Is CVE-2023-5778 exploited in the wild?

No. Junglewise Threat Intelligence has no report of CVE-2023-5778 being exploited in the wild.

How severe is CVE-2023-5778?

High severity, with a CVSS score of 7.5, published 18 September 2026.

Which products and versions are affected?

ABB Freelance Controller AC700 through 2013, 2013 SP1, 2016, 2016 SP1, 2019, and 2019 SP1; ABB Freelance Controller AC800 through 2013, 2013 SP1, 2016, 2016 SP1, 2019, and 2019 SP1; ABB Freelance Controller AC900 through 2013, 2013 SP1, 2016, 2016 SP1, 2019, and 2019 SP1; ABB Freelance Controller DCP through 2013, 2013 SP1, 2016, 2016 SP1, 2019, and 2019 SP1.

Is there a fix for CVE-2023-5778?

No fixed version is recorded yet. Check the vendor's advisory in the references below. If you run it, Junglewise drafts a mitigation that fits your setup and applies it once you approve, with senior security engineers behind it.

How is CVE-2023-5778 attacked?

It is attacked over the network, in a network appliance.

Am I affected by CVE-2023-5778?

Check whether you run ABB Freelance Controller AC700, ABB Freelance Controller AC800, ABB Freelance Controller AC900 or one of the others listed at an affected version. Junglewise does that check for you around the clock: connect your code, cloud and domains, and it matches new vulnerabilities like this one against what you actually run and tells you when one reaches you.

CVE-2023-5778: ABB Freelance Controller improper length parameter handling

CVE-2023-5778 · Severity: high · CVSS 7.5 · Published 2026-09-18

ABB Freelance Controller products are used to control and automate industrial processes in manufacturing and critical infrastructure environments. An improper handling of length parameters in these controllers can allow an attacker to send specially crafted network packets that cause the controller to malfunction, resulting in operational disruption or system instability.

Vendors: ABB.

Quick answers

Is CVE-2023-5778 exploited in the wild?: No. Junglewise Threat Intelligence has no report of CVE-2023-5778 being exploited in the wild.
How severe is CVE-2023-5778?: High severity, with a CVSS score of 7.5, published 18 September 2026.
Which products and versions are affected?: ABB Freelance Controller AC700 through 2013, 2013 SP1, 2016, 2016 SP1, 2019, and 2019 SP1; ABB Freelance Controller AC800 through 2013, 2013 SP1, 2016, 2016 SP1, 2019, and 2019 SP1; ABB Freelance Controller AC900 through 2013, 2013 SP1, 2016, 2016 SP1, 2019, and 2019 SP1; ABB Freelance Controller DCP through 2013, 2013 SP1, 2016, 2016 SP1, 2019, and 2019 SP1.
Is there a fix for CVE-2023-5778?: No fixed version is recorded yet. Check the vendor's advisory in the references below. If you run it, Junglewise drafts a mitigation that fits your setup and applies it once you approve, with senior security engineers behind it.
How is CVE-2023-5778 attacked?: It is attacked over the network, in a network appliance.
Am I affected by CVE-2023-5778?: Check whether you run ABB Freelance Controller AC700, ABB Freelance Controller AC800, ABB Freelance Controller AC900 or one of the others listed at an affected version. Junglewise does that check for you around the clock: connect your code, cloud and domains, and it matches new vulnerabilities like this one against what you actually run and tells you when one reaches you.

Technical details

This vulnerability involves improper validation of length parameters in network communications, where a mismatch between declared and actual message lengths is not properly handled. The affected components process network-based protocol messages without sufficient length validation, allowing an attacker to send malformed packets. The vulnerability is network-accessible and does not require authentication. An attacker can exploit this to cause denial of service or potentially unexpected behavior in the industrial controller. Patches are available through ABB's advisory and should be applied to all affected product versions.

Affected products

ABB Freelance Controller DCP through 2013, 2013 SP1, 2016, 2016 SP1, 2019, and 2019 SP1
ABB Freelance Controller AC700 through 2013, 2013 SP1, 2016, 2016 SP1, 2019, and 2019 SP1
ABB Freelance Controller AC800 through 2013, 2013 SP1, 2016, 2016 SP1, 2019, and 2019 SP1
ABB Freelance Controller AC900 through 2013, 2013 SP1, 2016, 2016 SP1, 2019, and 2019 SP1

Timeline

2026-09-18: disclosed

References

https://search.abb.com/library/Download.aspx?DocumentID=7PAA010706&LanguageCode=en&DocumentPartId=&Action=Launch

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