# CVE-2023-42464: netatalk: A Type Confusion vulnerability was found in the Spotlight RPC functions in afpd in Netatalk 3.1.x before 3.1.17

CVE-2023-42464 is fixed in netatalk on 1 platform, first by netatalk 3.1.12~ds-4ubuntu0.20.04.3, released September 16, 2023. It is not reported as exploited. Patch Radar priority: High.

- Web page: https://patchblox.com/security/cve/CVE-2023-42464
- Priority: High
- CVSS: 9.8 (Medium)
- EPSS: 0.0210
- CISA KEV: not listed
- Exploited (vendor report): no
- Publicly disclosed: no
- Published: Sep 16, 2023

## Description

A Type Confusion vulnerability was found in the Spotlight RPC functions in afpd in Netatalk 3.1.x before 3.1.17. When parsing Spotlight RPC packets, one encoded data structure is a key-value style dictionary where the keys are character strings, and the values can be any of the supported types in the underlying protocol. Due to a lack of type checking in callers of the dalloc_value_for_key() function, which returns the object associated with a key, a malicious actor may be able to fully control the value of the pointer and theoretically achieve Remote Code Execution on the host. This issue is similar to CVE-2023-34967.

## Where it's fixed

| Platform | Product | Fixed in | Fix | Released |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Linux | netatalk Debian 13.5 (trixie) | 3.1.17~ds-1 | [DEBIAN-CVE-2023-42464](https://patchblox.com/security/data/fix/linux/debian-cve-2023-42464.md) | Sep 20, 2023 |
| Linux | netatalk Debian 14 | 3.1.17~ds-1 | [DEBIAN-CVE-2023-42464](https://patchblox.com/security/data/fix/linux/debian-cve-2023-42464.md) | Sep 20, 2023 |
| Linux | netatalk Ubuntu 20.04 LTS (focal) | 3.1.12~ds-4ubuntu0.20.04.3 | [netatalk 3.1.12~ds-4ubuntu0.20.04.3](https://patchblox.com/security/data/fix/linux/ubuntu-focal-netatalk-3.1.12-ds-4ubuntu0.20.04.3.md) | Sep 16, 2023 |
| Linux | netatalk Ubuntu 22.04.1 LTS (jammy) | 3.1.12~ds-9ubuntu0.22.04.3 | [netatalk 3.1.12~ds-9ubuntu0.22.04.3](https://patchblox.com/security/data/fix/linux/ubuntu-jammy-netatalk-3.1.12-ds-9ubuntu0.22.04.3.md) | Sep 16, 2023 |

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Data as of 2026-11-09T07:25:28Z UTC. Source: Patchblox Patch Radar (https://patchblox.com/security/patch-radar). Patchblox finds out-of-date software on Windows, macOS and Linux and updates it through release rings: https://patchblox.com/demo

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