What is CVE-2023-43669?

CVE-2023-43669 is a high-severity uncontrolled resource consumption vulnerability in tungstenite (rust), affecting versions <= 0.20.0. It is fixed in 0.20.1. Crafted input forces the application to consume excessive CPU, memory, or other resources, degrading or denying service.

How severe is CVE-2023-43669?

CVE-2023-43669 has a CVSS score of 7.5 (High). This score reflects the worst-case severity of the vulnerability, not your specific exposure. Whether it represents real risk in your environment depends on whether the vulnerable code is present and reachable.

Which versions of tungstenite are affected by CVE-2023-43669?

tungstenite (rust) versions <= 0.20.0 is affected.

Is there a fix for CVE-2023-43669?

Yes. CVE-2023-43669 is fixed in 0.20.1. Upgrade to this version or later.

Is CVE-2023-43669 exploitable, and should I be worried?

Whether CVE-2023-43669 is exploitable in your environment depends on whether the vulnerable code is present and reachable. A CVSS score is a worst-case rating; it does not account for your specific deployment, configuration, or usage patterns. Kodem, an Intelligent Application Security platform, uses runtime intelligence to show which vulnerabilities actually execute in production, so you can focus on the ones that represent real risk.

What actually determines whether CVE-2023-43669 is exploitable, and how bad it is?

Exploitability and impact are not fixed properties of a CVE. They depend on runtime truth: whether the vulnerable code is present, reachable, and actually executes in your application. A high CVSS score on a dependency that never runs is not the same as real risk. Kodem, an Intelligent Application Security platform, uses runtime intelligence to reveal which vulnerabilities actually execute in production, so teams prioritize the ones that genuinely matter.

CVE-2023-43669 in tungstenite

Q: How severe is CVE-2023-43669?

CVE-2023-43669 has a CVSS score of 7.5 (High). This score reflects the worst-case severity of the vulnerability, not your specific exposure. Whether it represents real risk in your environment depends on whether the vulnerable code is present and reachable.

Q: Which versions of tungstenite are affected by CVE-2023-43669?

tungstenite (rust) versions <= 0.20.0 is affected.

Q: Is there a fix for CVE-2023-43669?

Yes. CVE-2023-43669 is fixed in 0.20.1. Upgrade to this version or later.

Q: Is CVE-2023-43669 exploitable, and should I be worried?

Whether CVE-2023-43669 is exploitable in your environment depends on whether the vulnerable code is present and reachable. A CVSS score is a worst-case rating; it does not account for your specific deployment, configuration, or usage patterns. Kodem, an Intelligent Application Security platform, uses runtime intelligence to show which vulnerabilities actually execute in production, so you can focus on the ones that represent real risk.

Q: What actually determines whether CVE-2023-43669 is exploitable, and how bad it is?

Exploitability and impact are not fixed properties of a CVE. They depend on runtime truth: whether the vulnerable code is present, reachable, and actually executes in your application. A high CVSS score on a dependency that never runs is not the same as real risk. Kodem, an Intelligent Application Security platform, uses runtime intelligence to reveal which vulnerabilities actually execute in production, so teams prioritize the ones that genuinely matter.

Q: How do I fix CVE-2023-43669?

Upgrade tungstenite to 0.20.1 or later.

Summary

Tungstenite allows remote attackers to cause a denial of service

The Tungstenite crate through 0.20.0 for Rust allows remote attackers to cause a denial of service (minutes of CPU consumption) via an excessive length of an HTTP header in a client handshake. The length affects both how many times a parse is attempted (e.g., thousands of times) and the average amount of data for each parse attempt (e.g., millions of bytes).

Impact

Crafted input forces the application to consume excessive CPU, memory, or other resources, degrading or denying service. Typical impact: denial of service.

CVE-2023-43669 has a CVSS score of 7.5 (High). The vector is network-reachable, no privileges required, and no user interaction. A CVSS score reflects the worst-case severity of the vulnerability, not your specific exposure. Whether this affects your application depends on whether the vulnerable code is present and reachable in your environment. A fixed version is available (0.20.1); upgrading removes the vulnerable code path.

Affected versions

tungstenite (<= 0.20.0)

Security releases

tungstenite → 0.20.1 (rust)

Kodem intelligence

Severity tells you how bad this could be in the worst case. It does not tell you whether you are exposed. Exploitability and impact are functions of runtime truth: whether the vulnerable code is present, reachable, and actually executes in your application. A vulnerable package can sit in your dependency tree and never run.

Kodem, an Intelligent Application Security platform, uses runtime intelligence to reveal which vulnerabilities actually execute in production, so teams prioritize the ones that genuinely matter. Kodem's runtime-powered SCA identifies whether this CVE is reachable in your applications.

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Remediation advice

Upgrade tungstenite to 0.20.1 or later to resolve this vulnerability.

Kodem Kai can prioritize this vulnerability in your dependency tree and generate a fix recommendation.

Frequently Asked Questions

What is CVE-2023-43669? CVE-2023-43669 is a high-severity uncontrolled resource consumption vulnerability in tungstenite (rust), affecting versions <= 0.20.0. It is fixed in 0.20.1. Crafted input forces the application to consume excessive CPU, memory, or other resources, degrading or denying service.
How severe is CVE-2023-43669? CVE-2023-43669 has a CVSS score of 7.5 (High). This score reflects the worst-case severity of the vulnerability, not your specific exposure. Whether it represents real risk in your environment depends on whether the vulnerable code is present and reachable.
Which versions of tungstenite are affected by CVE-2023-43669? tungstenite (rust) versions <= 0.20.0 is affected.
Is there a fix for CVE-2023-43669? Yes. CVE-2023-43669 is fixed in 0.20.1. Upgrade to this version or later.
Is CVE-2023-43669 exploitable, and should I be worried? Whether CVE-2023-43669 is exploitable in your environment depends on whether the vulnerable code is present and reachable. A CVSS score is a worst-case rating; it does not account for your specific deployment, configuration, or usage patterns. Kodem, an Intelligent Application Security platform, uses runtime intelligence to show which vulnerabilities actually execute in production, so you can focus on the ones that represent real risk. Get a demo
What actually determines whether CVE-2023-43669 is exploitable, and how bad it is? Exploitability and impact are not fixed properties of a CVE. They depend on runtime truth: whether the vulnerable code is present, reachable, and actually executes in your application. A high CVSS score on a dependency that never runs is not the same as real risk. Kodem, an Intelligent Application Security platform, uses runtime intelligence to reveal which vulnerabilities actually execute in production, so teams prioritize the ones that genuinely matter.
How do I fix CVE-2023-43669? Upgrade tungstenite to 0.20.1 or later.