CVE-2023-45129
CVE-2023-45129 is a medium-severity vulnerability in Matrix Synapse with a CVSS 3.x base score of 4.9. It is not currently listed as actively exploited by CISA, and its EPSS exploit-prediction score is low. The underlying weakness is classified as CWE-770.
Key facts
- Severity: Medium (CVSS 3.x base score 4.9)
- EPSS exploit prediction: 1% (64th percentile)
- Actively exploited: Not listed in CISA KEV
- Weakness: CWE-770
- Affected product: Matrix Synapse
- Published:
- Last modified:
Description
Synapse is an open-source Matrix homeserver written and maintained by the Matrix.org Foundation. Prior to version 1.94.0, a malicious server ACL event can impact performance temporarily or permanently leading to a persistent denial of service. Homeservers running on a closed federation (which presumably do not need to use server ACLs) are not affected. Server administrators are advised to upgrade to Synapse 1.94.0 or later. As a workaround, rooms with malicious server ACL events can be purged and blocked using the admin API.
Frequently asked questions
- What is CVE-2023-45129?
- Synapse is an open-source Matrix homeserver written and maintained by the Matrix.org Foundation. Prior to version 1.94.0, a malicious server ACL event can impact performance temporarily or permanently leading to a persistent denial of service. Homeservers running on a closed federation (which presumably do not need to use server ACLs) are not affected. Server administrators are advised to upgrade to Synapse 1.94.0 or later. As a workaround, rooms with malicious server ACL events can be purged and blocked using the admin API.
- How severe is CVE-2023-45129?
- CVE-2023-45129 has a CVSS 3.x base score of 4.9, rated medium severity. It is exploitable over network with low attack complexity, requires high privileges and no user interaction. Impact on confidentiality is none, integrity none, and availability high.
- Is CVE-2023-45129 being actively exploited?
- It is not currently listed in CISA's KEV catalog. Its EPSS exploit-prediction score is 1% (64th percentile), an estimate of the probability of exploitation in the next 30 days.
- What products are affected by CVE-2023-45129?
- CVE-2023-45129 primarily affects Matrix Synapse. In total, 3 product configurations (CPEs) are listed as vulnerable; see the affected-products list for the exact versions.
- How do I fix CVE-2023-45129?
- Review the linked vendor and NVD advisories for patched versions and mitigations, then upgrade or apply the recommended workaround.
- When was CVE-2023-45129 published?
- CVE-2023-45129 was published on 2023-10-10 and last updated on 2026-06-17.
References
- https://github.com/matrix-org/synapse/pull/16360
- https://github.com/matrix-org/synapse/security/advisories/GHSA-5chr-wjw5-3gq4
- https://lists.fedoraproject.org/archives/list/[email protected]/message/KEVRB4MG5UXQ5RLZHSUJXM5GWEBYYS5B/
- https://lists.fedoraproject.org/archives/list/[email protected]/message/N6P4QULVUE254WI7XF2LWWOGHCYVFXFY/
- https://lists.fedoraproject.org/archives/list/[email protected]/message/WRO4MPQ6HOXIUZM6RJP6VTCTMV7RD2T3/
- https://matrix-org.github.io/synapse/latest/admin_api/rooms.html#version-2-new-version
- https://security.gentoo.org/glsa/202401-12
Affected products (3)
- cpe:2.3:a:matrix:synapse:*:*:*:*:*:*:*:*
- cpe:2.3:o:fedoraproject:fedora:37:*:*:*:*:*:*:*
- cpe:2.3:o:fedoraproject:fedora:38:*:*:*:*:*:*:*
More vulnerabilities in Matrix Synapse
- CVE-2019-18835 — Critical (CVSS 9.8): Matrix Synapse before 1.5.0 mishandles signature checking on some federation APIs. Events sent over /send_join,…
- CVE-2024-53863 — Critical (CVSS 9.1): Synapse is an open-source Matrix homeserver. In Synapse versions before 1.120.1, enabling the dynamic_thumbnails option…
- CVE-2018-16515 — High (CVSS 8.8): Matrix Synapse before 0.33.3.1 allows remote attackers to spoof events and possibly have unspecified other impacts by…
- CVE-2024-52805 — High (CVSS 7.5): Synapse is an open-source Matrix homeserver. In Synapse before 1.120.1, multipart/form-data requests can in certain…
- CVE-2024-37302 — High (CVSS 7.5): Synapse is an open-source Matrix homeserver. Synapse versions before 1.106 are vulnerable to a disk fill attack, where…
- CVE-2021-41281 — High (CVSS 7.5): Synapse is a package for Matrix homeservers written in Python 3/Twisted. Prior to version 1.47.1, Synapse instances…
All CVEs affecting Matrix Synapse →
Other CWE-770 (Allocation of Resources Without Limits or Throttling) vulnerabilities
- CVE-2026-31283 — Critical (CVSS 9.8): In Totara LMS v19.1.5 and before, the forgot password API does not implement rate limiting for the target email…
- CVE-2020-37067 — Critical (CVSS 9.8): Filetto 1.0 FTP server contains a denial of service vulnerability in the FEAT command processing that allows attackers…
- CVE-2021-47875 — Critical (CVSS 9.8): GeoGebra CAS Calculator 6.0.631.0 contains a denial of service vulnerability that allows attackers to crash the…
- CVE-2025-11832 — Critical (CVSS 9.8): Allocation of Resources Without Limits or Throttling vulnerability in Azure Access Technology BLU-IC2, Azure Access…
- CVE-2024-44241 — Critical (CVSS 9.8): The issue was addressed with improved bounds checks. This issue is fixed in iOS 18.1 and iPadOS 18.1, macOS Sequoia…
- CVE-2022-3439 — Critical (CVSS 9.8): Allocation of Resources Without Limits or Throttling in GitHub repository ikus060/rdiffweb prior to 2.5.0.
Browse all CWE-770 (Allocation of Resources Without Limits or Throttling) vulnerabilities →