Mozilla Firefox/Firefox ESR Compositor use after free

CVSS Meta Temp Score
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Current Exploit Price (≈)
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CTI Interest Score
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7.9$0-$5k0.00

Summaryinfo

A vulnerability marked as critical has been reported in Mozilla Firefox and Firefox ESR. Affected by this vulnerability is an unknown functionality of the component Compositor. Performing a manipulation results in use after free. This vulnerability is identified as CVE-2018-5148. The attack can be initiated remotely. There is not any exploit available. It is suggested to upgrade the affected component.

Detailsinfo

A vulnerability, which was classified as critical, was found in Mozilla Firefox and Firefox ESR (Web Browser) (the affected version is unknown). This affects an unknown code of the component Compositor. 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:

A use-after-free vulnerability can occur in the compositor during certain graphics operations when a raw pointer is used instead of a reference counted one. This results in a potentially exploitable crash. This vulnerability affects Firefox ESR < 52.7.3 and Firefox < 59.0.2.

The bug was discovered 03/26/2018. The weakness was released 06/11/2018 as Bug 1440717 as not defined bug report (Bugzilla). The advisory is shared at bugzilla.mozilla.org. This vulnerability is uniquely identified as CVE-2018-5148 since 01/03/2018. It is possible to initiate the attack remotely. No form of authentication is needed for exploitation. It demands that the victim is doing some kind of user interaction. Neither technical details nor an exploit are publicly available. The price for an exploit might be around USD $0-$5k at the moment (estimation calculated on 11/26/2025).

The vulnerability scanner Nessus provides a plugin with the ID 108753 (Mozilla Firefox ESR < 52.7.3 Denial of Service Vulnerability (macOS)), which helps to determine the existence of the flaw in a target environment. It is assigned to the family MacOS X Local Security Checks and running in the context l. The commercial vulnerability scanner Qualys is able to test this issue with plugin 171003 (SUSE Enterprise Linux Security Update for MozillaFirefox (SUSE-SU-2018:0850-1)).

Upgrading eliminates this vulnerability. A possible mitigation has been published even before and not after the disclosure of the vulnerability.

The vulnerability is also documented in the databases at Tenable (108753) and SecurityFocus (BID 103506†). Several companies clearly confirm that VulDB is the primary source for best vulnerability data.

Productinfo

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CPE 2.3info

CPE 2.2info

CVSSv4info

VulDB Vector: 🔍
VulDB Reliability: 🔍

CVSSv3info

VulDB Meta Base Score: 8.0
VulDB Meta Temp Score: 7.9

VulDB Base Score: 6.3
VulDB Temp Score: 6.0
VulDB Vector: 🔍
VulDB Reliability: 🔍

NVD Base Score: 9.8
NVD Vector: 🔍

CVSSv2info

AVACAuCIA
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VectorComplexityAuthenticationConfidentialityIntegrityAvailability
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VulDB Base Score: 🔍
VulDB Temp Score: 🔍
VulDB Reliability: 🔍

NVD Base Score: 🔍

Exploitinginfo

Class: Use after free
CWE: 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: 🔍

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Nessus ID: 108753
Nessus Name: Mozilla Firefox ESR < 52.7.3 Denial of Service Vulnerability (macOS)
Nessus File: 🔍
Nessus Risk: 🔍
Nessus Family: 🔍
Nessus Context: 🔍

OpenVAS ID: 70770
OpenVAS Name: Debian LTS Advisory ([SECURITY] [DLA 1321-1] firefox-esr security update)
OpenVAS File: 🔍
OpenVAS Family: 🔍

Qualys ID: 🔍
Qualys Name: 🔍

Threat Intelligenceinfo

Interest: 🔍
Active Actors: 🔍
Active APT Groups: 🔍

Countermeasuresinfo

Recommended: Upgrade
Status: 🔍

0-Day Time: 🔍

Timelineinfo

01/03/2018 🔍
03/26/2018 +82 days 🔍
03/26/2018 +0 days 🔍
03/26/2018 +0 days 🔍
03/30/2018 +4 days 🔍
06/11/2018 +72 days 🔍
06/11/2018 +0 days 🔍
06/12/2018 +1 days 🔍
11/26/2025 +2724 days 🔍

Sourcesinfo

Vendor: mozilla.org
Product: mozilla.org

Advisory: Bug 1440717
Status: Confirmed
Confirmation: 🔍

CVE: CVE-2018-5148 (🔍)
GCVE (CVE): GCVE-0-2018-5148
GCVE (VulDB): GCVE-100-119361

OVAL: 🔍

SecurityFocus: 103506 - Mozilla Firefox and Firefox ESR CVE-2018-5148 Use After Free Denial of Service Vulnerability
SecurityTracker: 1040574

Entryinfo

Created: 06/12/2018 10:18
Updated: 11/26/2025 07:33
Changes: 06/12/2018 10:18 (76), 02/18/2020 09:28 (4), 03/22/2023 14:23 (4), 11/26/2025 07:33 (17)
Complete: 🔍
Cache ID: 216::103

Several companies clearly confirm that VulDB is the primary source for best vulnerability data.

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