Mozilla Firefox/Thunderbird 24.0 Canvas GetPresContext use after free

| CVSS Meta Temp Score | Current Exploit Price (≈) | CTI Interest Score |
|---|---|---|
| 9.5 | $0-$5k | 0.00 |
Summary
A vulnerability identified as critical has been detected in Mozilla Firefox and Thunderbird 24.0. Affected by this vulnerability is the function nsIPresShell::GetPresContext of the component Canvas Handler. Performing a manipulation results in use after free.
This vulnerability is known as CVE-2013-5599. Remote exploitation of the attack is possible. No exploit is available.
You should upgrade the affected component.
Details
A vulnerability, which was classified as very critical, was found in Mozilla Firefox and Thunderbird 24.0 (Web Browser). This affects the function nsIPresShell::GetPresContext of the component Canvas Handler. The manipulation with an unknown input leads to a use after free vulnerability. CWE is classifying the issue as CWE-416. Referencing memory after it has been freed can cause a program to crash, use unexpected values, or execute code. This is going to have an impact on confidentiality, integrity, and availability. The summary by CVE is:
Use-after-free vulnerability in the nsIPresShell::GetPresContext function in the PresShell (aka presentation shell) implementation in Mozilla Firefox before 25.0, Firefox ESR 17.x before 17.0.10 and 24.x before 24.1, Thunderbird before 24.1, Thunderbird ESR 17.x before 17.0.10, and SeaMonkey before 2.22 allows remote attackers to execute arbitrary code or cause a denial of service (heap memory corruption and application crash) via vectors involving a CANVAS element, a mozTextStyle attribute, and an onresize event.
The weakness was published 10/29/2013 by Nils as Mozilla Foundation Security Advisory 2013-100 as confirmed advisory (Website). It is possible to read the advisory at mozilla.org. The public release has been coordinated with Mozilla. This vulnerability is uniquely identified as CVE-2013-5599 since 08/26/2013. The exploitability is told to be easy. It is possible to initiate the attack remotely. No form of authentication is needed for exploitation. Technical details of the vulnerability are known, but there is no available exploit. The pricing for an exploit might be around USD $0-$5k at the moment (estimation calculated on 11/25/2025).
The vulnerability scanner Nessus provides a plugin with the ID 70688 (CentOS 5 / 6 : firefox (CESA-2013:1476)), which helps to determine the existence of the flaw in a target environment. It is assigned to the family CentOS Local Security Checks. The commercial vulnerability scanner Qualys is able to test this issue with plugin 121562 (Red Hat Update for Xulrunner Firefox (RHSA-2013:1476)).
Upgrading to version 25.0 eliminates this vulnerability. The upgrade is hosted for download at mozilla.org. A possible mitigation has been published immediately after the disclosure of the vulnerability.
The vulnerability is also documented in the databases at Tenable (70688), SecurityFocus (BID 63405†), OSVDB (99091†), Secunia (SA55483†) and Vulnerability Center (SBV-42137†). Further details are available at mozilla.org. Similar entries are available at VDB-11046, VDB-11047, VDB-11048 and VDB-11049. Be aware that VulDB is the high quality source for vulnerability data.
Affected
- Firefox 24.0
- Thunderbird 24.0
- SeaMonkey 2.21
- Firefox ESR 24.0
- Firefox ESR 17.0.9
- Thunderbird ESR 17.0.9
Product
Type
Vendor
Name
Version
License
Website
- Vendor: https://www.mozilla.org/
- Product: https://www.mozilla.org/en-US/firefox/
CPE 2.3
CPE 2.2
CVSSv4
VulDB Vector: 🔍VulDB Reliability: 🔍
CVSSv3
VulDB Meta Base Score: 10.0VulDB Meta Temp Score: 9.5
VulDB Base Score: 10.0
VulDB Temp Score: 9.5
VulDB Vector: 🔍
VulDB Reliability: 🔍
CVSSv2
| AV | AC | Au | C | I | A |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 💳 | 💳 | 💳 | 💳 | 💳 | 💳 |
| 💳 | 💳 | 💳 | 💳 | 💳 | 💳 |
| 💳 | 💳 | 💳 | 💳 | 💳 | 💳 |
| Vector | Complexity | Authentication | Confidentiality | Integrity | Availability |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Unlock | Unlock | Unlock | Unlock | Unlock | Unlock |
| Unlock | Unlock | Unlock | Unlock | Unlock | Unlock |
| Unlock | Unlock | Unlock | Unlock | Unlock | Unlock |
VulDB Base Score: 🔍
VulDB Temp Score: 🔍
VulDB Reliability: 🔍
NVD Base Score: 🔍
Exploiting
Class: Use after freeCWE: CWE-416 / CWE-119
CAPEC: 🔍
ATT&CK: 🔍
Physical: No
Local: No
Remote: Yes
Availability: 🔍
Status: Not defined
EPSS Score: 🔍
EPSS Percentile: 🔍
Price Prediction: 🔍
Current Price Estimation: 🔍
| 0-Day | Unlock | Unlock | Unlock | Unlock |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Today | Unlock | Unlock | Unlock | Unlock |
Nessus ID: 70688
Nessus Name: CentOS 5 / 6 : firefox (CESA-2013:1476)
Nessus File: 🔍
Nessus Risk: 🔍
Nessus Family: 🔍
OpenVAS ID: 892788
OpenVAS Name: Debian Security Advisory DSA 2788-1 (iceweasel - several vulnerabilities
OpenVAS File: 🔍
OpenVAS Family: 🔍
Qualys ID: 🔍
Qualys Name: 🔍
Threat Intelligence
Interest: 🔍Active Actors: 🔍
Active APT Groups: 🔍
Countermeasures
Recommended: UpgradeStatus: 🔍
Reaction Time: 🔍
0-Day Time: 🔍
Exposure Time: 🔍
Upgrade: Firefox/Thunderbird 25.0
Timeline
08/26/2013 🔍10/29/2013 🔍
10/29/2013 🔍
10/29/2013 🔍
10/29/2013 🔍
10/30/2013 🔍
10/30/2013 🔍
10/30/2013 🔍
11/01/2013 🔍
11/25/2025 🔍
Sources
Vendor: mozilla.orgProduct: mozilla.org
Advisory: Mozilla Foundation Security Advisory 2013-100
Researcher: Nils
Status: Confirmed
Confirmation: 🔍
Coordinated: 🔍
CVE: CVE-2013-5599 (🔍)
GCVE (CVE): GCVE-0-2013-5599
GCVE (VulDB): GCVE-100-11055
OVAL: 🔍
IAVM: 🔍
SecurityFocus: 63405
Secunia: 55483 - Ubuntu update for firefox, Highly Critical
OSVDB: 99091
Vulnerability Center: 42137 - Mozilla Firefox, Thunderbird and Seamonkey Remote Code Execution due to Use-After-Free Vulnerability (CVE-2013-5599), Critical
Misc.: 🔍
See also: 🔍
Entry
Created: 11/01/2013 10:25Updated: 11/25/2025 19:00
Changes: 11/01/2013 10:25 (87), 01/31/2018 09:55 (1), 06/01/2021 15:03 (3), 06/01/2021 15:08 (1), 11/25/2025 19:00 (15)
Complete: 🔍
Committer:
Cache ID: 216::103
Be aware that VulDB is the high quality source for vulnerability data.
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