Wasmtime has Undefined Behavior in Rust runtime functions

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No collected risk observation for these identifiers. This does not establish absence of exploitation or a zero probability.

Wasmtime is a standalone runtime for WebAssembly. Prior to versions 6.0.2, 7.0.1, and 8.0.1, Wasmtime's implementation of managing per-instance state, such as tables and memories, contains LLVM-level undefined behavior. This undefined behavior was found to cause runtime-level issues when compiled with LLVM 16 which causes some writes, which are critical for correctness, to be optimized away. Vulnerable versions of Wasmtime compiled with Rust 1.70, which is currently in beta, or later are known to have incorrectly compiled functions. Versions of Wasmtime compiled with the current Rust stable release, 1.69, and prior are not known at this time to have any issues, but can theoretically exhibit potential issues. The underlying problem is that Wasmtime's runtime state for an instance involves a Rust-defined structure called `Instance` which has a trailing `VMContext` structure after it. This `VMContext` structure has a runtime-defined layout that is unique per-module. This representation cannot be expressed with safe code in Rust so `unsafe` code is required to maintain this state. The code doing this, however, has methods which take `&self` as an argument but modify data in the `VMContext` part of the allocation. This means that pointers derived from `&self` are mutated. This is typically not allowed, except in the presence of `UnsafeCell`, in Rust. When compiled to LLVM these functions have `noalias readonly` parameters which means it's UB to write through the pointers. Wasmtime's internal representation and management of `VMContext` has been updated to use `&mut self` methods where appropriate. Additionally verification tools for `unsafe` code in Rust, such as `cargo miri`, are planned to be executed on the `main` branch soon to fix any Rust-level issues that may be exploited in future compiler versions. Precomplied binaries available for Wasmtime from GitHub releases have been compiled with at most LLVM 15 so are not known to be vulnerable. As mentioned above, however, it's still recommended to update. Wasmtime version 6.0.2, 7.0.1, and 8.0.1 have been issued which contain the patch necessary to work correctly on LLVM 16 and have no known UB on LLVM 15 and earlier. If Wasmtime is compiled with Rust 1.69 and prior, which use LLVM 15, then there are no known issues. There is a theoretical possibility for undefined behavior to exploited, however, so it's recommended that users upgrade to a patched version of Wasmtime. Users using beta Rust (1.70 at this time) or nightly Rust (1.71 at this time) must update to a patched version to work correctly.

Source published

27 Apr 2023 16:56:49 UTC

Source modified

30 Jan 2025 19:33:32 UTC

Observed here

23 Oct 2026 15:48:27 UTC

Source terms

CVE Program Terms of Use

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CVSS 3.1 · 3.9 CVSS:3.1/AV:N/AC:H/PR:H/UI:R/S:U/C:L/I:L/A:L

Wasmtime is a standalone runtime for WebAssembly. Prior to versions 6.0.2, 7.0.1, and 8.0.1, Wasmtime's implementation of managing per-instance state, such as tables and memories, contains LLVM-level undefined behavior. This undefined behavior was found to cause runtime-level issues when compiled with LLVM 16 which causes some writes, which are critical for correctness, to be optimized away. Vulnerable versions of Wasmtime compiled with Rust 1.70, which is currently in beta, or later are known to have incorrectly compiled functions. Versions of Wasmtime compiled with the current Rust stable release, 1.69, and prior are not known at this time to have any issues, but can theoretically exhibit potential issues. The underlying problem is that Wasmtime's runtime state for an instance involves a Rust-defined structure called `Instance` which has a trailing `VMContext` structure after it. This `VMContext` structure has a runtime-defined layout that is unique per-module. This representation cannot be expressed with safe code in Rust so `unsafe` code is required to maintain this state. The code doing this, however, has methods which take `&self` as an argument but modify data in the `VMContext` part of the allocation. This means that pointers derived from `&self` are mutated. This is typically not allowed, except in the presence of `UnsafeCell`, in Rust. When compiled to LLVM these functions have `noalias readonly` parameters which means it's UB to write through the pointers. Wasmtime's internal representation and management of `VMContext` has been updated to use `&mut self` methods where appropriate. Additionally verification tools for `unsafe` code in Rust, such as `cargo miri`, are planned to be executed on the `main` branch soon to fix any Rust-level issues that may be exploited in future compiler versions. Precomplied binaries available for Wasmtime from GitHub releases have been compiled with at most LLVM 15 so are not known to be vulnerable. As mentioned above, however, it's still recommended to update. Wasmtime version 6.0.2, 7.0.1, and 8.0.1 have been issued which contain the patch necessary to work correctly on LLVM 16 and have no known UB on LLVM 15 and earlier. If Wasmtime is compiled with Rust 1.69 and prior, which use LLVM 15, then there are no known issues. There is a theoretical possibility for undefined behavior to exploited, however, so it's recommended that users upgrade to a patched version of Wasmtime. Users using beta Rust (1.70 at this time) or nightly Rust (1.71 at this time) must update to a patched version to work correctly.

Source published

Apr 27, 2023, 4:56:49 PM (timezone not stated)

Source modified

Jan 30, 2025, 7:33:32 PM (timezone not stated)

Observed here

10 Nov 2026 01:25:12 UTC

Source terms

ENISA EUVD · source terms and attribution apply

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This view projects the publisher's source fields for reading; the original JSON retains additional fields and CVE enrichment containers. Attribution: euvd · ENISA EUVD · source terms and attribution apply. Source text is retained; field grouping and change labels are provided by ChangeIntel.

EUVD CVSS 3.1 · 3.9 CVSS:3.1/AV:N/AC:H/PR:H/UI:R/S:U/C:L/I:L/A:L

Wasmtime is a standalone runtime for WebAssembly. Prior to versions 6.0.2, 7.0.1, and 8.0.1, Wasmtime's implementation of managing per-instance state, such as tables and memories, contains LLVM-level undefined behavior. This undefined behavior was found to cause runtime-level issues when compiled with LLVM 16 which causes some writes, which are critical for correctness, to be optimized away. Vulnerable versions of Wasmtime compiled with Rust 1.70, which is currently in beta, or later are known to have incorrectly compiled functions. Versions of Wasmtime compiled with the current Rust stable release, 1.69, and prior are not known at this time to have any issues, but can theoretically exhibit potential issues. The underlying problem is that Wasmtime's runtime state for an instance involves a Rust-defined structure called `Instance` which has a trailing `VMContext` structure after it. This `VMContext` structure has a runtime-defined layout that is unique per-module. This representation cannot be expressed with safe code in Rust so `unsafe` code is required to maintain this state. The code doing this, however, has methods which take `&self` as an argument but modify data in the `VMContext` part of the allocation. This means that pointers derived from `&self` are mutated. This is typically not allowed, except in the presence of `UnsafeCell`, in Rust. When compiled to LLVM these functions have `noalias readonly` parameters which means it's UB to write through the pointers. Wasmtime's internal representation and management of `VMContext` has been updated to use `&mut self` methods where appropriate. Additionally verification tools for `unsafe` code in Rust, such as `cargo miri`, are planned to be executed on the `main` branch soon to fix any Rust-level issues that may be exploited in future compiler versions. Precomplied binaries available for Wasmtime from GitHub releases have been compiled with at most LLVM 15 so are not known to be vulnerable. As mentioned above, however, it's still recommended to update. Wasmtime version 6.0.2, 7.0.1, and 8.0.1 have been issued which contain the patch necessary to work correctly on LLVM 16 and have no known UB on LLVM 15 and earlier. If Wasmtime is compiled with Rust 1.69 and prior, which use LLVM 15, then there are no known issues. There is a theoretical possibility for undefined behavior to exploited, however, so it's recommended that users upgrade to a patched version of Wasmtime. Users using beta Rust (1.70 at this time) or nightly Rust (1.71 at this time) must update to a patched version to work correctly.

Source published

27 Apr 2023 17:15:08 UTC

Source modified

17 Jun 2026 05:55:10 UTC

Observed here

24 Oct 2026 22:17:10 UTC

Source terms

NIST NVD usage terms; underlying source attribution retained

Original source record · Cite this exact observation · Complete original publisher JSON

This view projects the publisher's source fields for reading; the original JSON retains additional fields and CVE enrichment containers. Attribution: nvd · NIST NVD usage terms; underlying source attribution retained. Source text is retained; field grouping and change labels are provided by ChangeIntel.

CVSS 3.1 · [email protected] · Secondary · 3.9 CVSS:3.1/AV:N/AC:H/PR:H/UI:R/S:U/C:L/I:L/A:L

CVSS 3.1 · [email protected] · Primary · 8.8 CVSS:3.1/AV:N/AC:L/PR:L/UI:N/S:U/C:H/I:H/A:H

### Impact Wasmtime's implementation of managing per-instance state, such as tables and memories, contains LLVM-level undefined behavior. This undefined behavior was found to cause runtime-level issues when compiled with LLVM 16 which causes some writes, which are critical for correctness, to be optimized away. Vulnerable versions of Wasmtime compiled with Rust 1.70, which is currently in beta, or later are known to have incorrectly compiled functions. Versions of Wasmtime compiled with the current Rust stable release, 1.69, and prior are not known at this time to have any issues, but can theoretically exhibit potential issues. The underlying problem is that Wasmtime's runtime state for an instance involves a Rust-defined structure called `Instance` which has a trailing `VMContext` structure after it. This `VMContext` structure has a runtime-defined layout that is unique per-module. This representation cannot be expressed with safe code in Rust so `unsafe` code is required to maintain this state. The code doing this, however, has methods which take `&self` as an argument but modify data in the `VMContext` part of the allocation. This means that pointers derived from `&self` are mutated. This is typically not allowed, except in the presence of `UnsafeCell`, in Rust. When compiled to LLVM these functions have `noalias readonly` parameters which means it's UB to write through the pointers. Wasmtime's internal representation and management of `VMContext` has been updated to use `&mut self` methods where appropriate. Additionally verification tools for `unsafe` code in Rust, such as `cargo miri`, are planned to be executed on the `main` branch soon to fix any Rust-level issues that may be exploited in future compiler versions. Precomplied binaries available for Wasmtime from GitHub releases have been compiled with at most LLVM 15 so are not known to be vulnerable. As mentioned above, however, it's still recommended to update. ### Patches Wasmtime version 6.0.2, 7.0.1, and 8.0.1 have been issued which contain the patch necessary to work correctly on LLVM 16 and have no known UB on LLVM 15 and earlier. ### Workarounds If Wasmtime is compiled with Rust 1.69 and prior, which use LLVM 15, then there are no known issues. There is a theoretical possibility for UB to exploited, however, so it's recommended that users upgrade to a patched version of Wasmtime. Users using beta Rust (1.70 at this time) or nightly Rust (1.71 at this time) must update to a patched version to work correctly. ### References * [GitHub Advisory](https://github.com/bytecodealliance/wasmtime/security/advisories/GHSA-ch89-5g45-qwc7) * [Mailing list announcement](https://groups.google.com/a/bytecodealliance.org/g/sec-announce/c/ecK-6G2yi90) ### For more information If you have any questions or comments about this advisory: * Reach out to us on [the Bytecode Alliance Zulip chat](https://bytecodealliance.zulipchat.com/#narrow/stream/217126-wasmtime) * Open an issue in [the bytecodealliance/wasmtime repository](https://github.com/bytecodealliance/wasmtime/)

Source published

27 Apr 2023 17:08:37 UTC

Source modified

2 May 2025 12:52:55 UTC

Observed here

24 Oct 2026 13:19:54 UTC

Source terms

GitHub Advisory Database · CC-BY-4.0

Original source record · Cite this exact observation · Complete original publisher JSON

This view projects the publisher's source fields for reading; the original JSON retains additional fields and CVE enrichment containers. Attribution: osv · GitHub Advisory Database · CC-BY-4.0. Source text is retained; field grouping and change labels are provided by ChangeIntel.

CVSS_V3 · CVSS:3.1/AV:N/AC:H/PR:H/UI:R/S:U/C:L/I:L/A:L

Publisher rating · LOW

This is an entry in the RustSec database for the Wasmtime security advisory located at https://github.com/bytecodealliance/wasmtime/security/advisories/GHSA-ch89-5g45-qwc7. For more information see the GitHub-hosted security advisory.

Source published

21 Apr 2023 12:00:00 UTC

Source modified

12 Oct 2026 18:00:02 UTC

Observed here

24 Oct 2026 13:19:54 UTC

Source terms

OSV · upstream source license applies

Original source record · Cite this exact observation · Complete original publisher JSON

This view projects the publisher's source fields for reading; the original JSON retains additional fields and CVE enrichment containers. Attribution: osv · OSV · upstream source license applies. Source text is retained; field grouping and change labels are provided by ChangeIntel.

CVSS_V3 · CVSS:3.1/AV:N/AC:H/PR:H/UI:R/S:U/C:L/I:L/A:L