CVE-2022-1616: Use after free in append_command in vim/vim

Severity: high (CVSS 7.8 v3.1)
Exploited in the wild: not listed in CISA KEV
EPSS: 2.7% probability of exploitation in the next 30 days
Public exploit or detection template: yes
Published: 2022-05-07 · updated 2026-10-08
Weakness: CWE-416

Description

Use after free in append_command in GitHub repository vim/vim prior to 8.2.4895. This vulnerability is capable of crashing software, Bypass Protection Mechanism, Modify Memory, and possible remote execution

Affected products

Apple macOS: before 13.0 — fixed in 13.0
Debian Linux: 9.0, 10.0
Fedoraproject Fedora: 34, 35, 36
vim/vim: before 8.2.4895 — fixed in 8.2.4895

How to fix

Upgrade to a fixed version: Apple macOS 13.0; vim/vim 8.2.4895. Check the vendor advisory for mitigations.

References

http://seclists.org/fulldisclosure/2022/Oct/28
http://seclists.org/fulldisclosure/2022/Oct/41
https://github.com/vim/vim/commit/d88934406c5375d88f8f1b65331c9f0cab68cc6c
https://huntr.dev/bounties/40f1d75f-fb2f-4281-b585-a41017f217e2
https://lists.debian.org/debian-lts-announce/2022/05/msg00022.html
https://lists.debian.org/debian-lts-announce/2022/11/msg00009.html
https://lists.fedoraproject.org/archives/list/package-announce%40lists.fedoraproject.org/message/A6BY5P7ERZS7KXSBCGFCOXLMLGWUUJIH/
https://lists.fedoraproject.org/archives/list/package-announce%40lists.fedoraproject.org/message/HIP7KG7TVS5YF3QREAY2GOGUT3YUBZAI/
https://lists.fedoraproject.org/archives/list/package-announce%40lists.fedoraproject.org/message/JUN33257RUM4RS2I4GZETKFSAXPETATG/
https://security.gentoo.org/glsa/202208-32
https://security.gentoo.org/glsa/202305-16
https://support.apple.com/kb/HT213488

Get alerted when CVE-2022-1616 or the next vulnerability affects your stack