ProFTPD 1.3.3c Backdoor Command Execution
Published Aug 20, 2025
9.3
CRITICALCVSS 4.0
EPSS 5.09%
Description
A malicious backdoor was embedded in the official ProFTPD 1.3.3c source tarball distributed between November 28 and December 2, 2010. The backdoor implements a hidden FTP command trigger that, when invoked, causes the server to execute arbitrary shell commands with root privileges. This allows remote, unauthenticated attackers to run any OS command on the FTP server host.
Affected products
-
- Version 1.3.3cStatusaffectedConstraints-
- Version
Default status is the baseline for the product, each version can override it (e.g. patched versions marked unaffected).
| Vendor | Product | Default status | Versions | ||||||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| ProFTPD Project | ProFTPD (Professional FTP Daemon) | unaffected |
|
No data.
No Red Hat product state for this CVE.
No package ranges for this CVE.
Remediation
No remediation recorded yet.
Metrics
CVSS:4.0/AV:N/AC:L/AT:N/PR:N/UI:N/VC:H/VI:H/VA:H/SC:N/SI:N/SA:N
1 other source (NVD) ▾
CVSS:4.0/AV:N/AC:L/AT:N/PR:N/UI:N/VC:H/VI:H/VA:H/SC:N/SI:N/SA:N/E:X/CR:X/IR:X/AR:X/MAV:X/MAC:X/MAT:X/MPR:X/MUI:X/MVC:X/MVI:X/MVA:X/MSC:X/MSI:X/MSA:X/S:X/AU:X/R:X/V:X/RE:X/U:X
CVSS:3.1/AV:N/AC:L/PR:N/UI:N/S:U/C:H/I:H/A:H
No CVSS v3.0 score for this CVE.
No CVSS v2.0 score for this CVE.
This CVE is not in the KEV list.
CISA SSVC (Vulnrichment)
Stakeholder-Specific Vulnerability Categorization from CISA ADP.
Exploitation
PoCAutomatable
YesTechnical Impact
TotalDecision
n/aAssessed Aug 22, 2025 · SSVC 2.0.3
Estimated probability of exploitation in the wild in the next 30 days (FIRST EPSS). As of Oct 1, 2026.
Score over time
2025–2026- EPSS v4
- EPSS v5
Percentile over time
- EPSS v4
- EPSS v5
Table of values (12 key points)
Flat stretches are collapsed; showing up to 120 newest points.
| Date | Score | Percentile | Model |
|---|---|---|---|
| Oct 1, 2026 | 5.09% (0.05090) | 92.09th | v5 (v2026.06.15) |
| Jun 15, 2026 | 4.75% (0.04753) | 90.70th | v5 (v2026.06.15) |
| Jan 28, 2026 | 85.08% (0.85079) | 99.32th | v4 (v2025.03.14) |
| Dec 28, 2025 | 83.70% (0.83702) | 99.26th | v4 (v2025.03.14) |
| Dec 27, 2025 | 82.30% (0.82299) | 99.18th | v4 (v2025.03.14) |
| Oct 28, 2025 | 84.04% (0.84035) | 99.26th | v4 (v2025.03.14) |
| Oct 27, 2025 | 82.67% (0.82673) | 99.19th | v4 (v2025.03.14) |
| Oct 24, 2025 | 83.71% (0.83711) | 99.25th | v4 (v2025.03.14) |
| Oct 16, 2025 | 82.21% (0.82213) | 99.17th | v4 (v2025.03.14) |
| Oct 8, 2025 | 67.89% (0.67894) | 98.51th | v4 (v2025.03.14) |
| Oct 1, 2025 | 1.61% (0.01606) | 81.16th | v4 (v2025.03.14) |
| Aug 21, 2025 | 0.16% (0.00160) | 37.46th | v4 (v2025.03.14) |
References (8)
- http://www.proftpd.org/ product
- https://advisories.checkpoint.com/defense/advisories/public/2011/cpai-2010-151.html/ third-party-advisoryThird Party Advisory
- https://github.com/proftpd/proftpd product
- https://raw.githubusercontent.com/rapid7/metasploit-framework/master/modules/exploits/unix/ftp/proftpd_133c_backdoor.rb exploitThird Party Advisory
- https://web.archive.org/web/20111107212129/http://rsync.proftpd.org/ vendor-advisorypatchRelease Notes
- https://www.exploit-db.com/exploits/15662 exploitVDB Entry
- https://www.exploit-db.com/exploits/16921 exploitVDB Entry
- https://www.vulncheck.com/advisories/proftpd-backdoor-command-execution third-party-advisoryThird Party Advisory
| Link | Providers | Tags |
|---|---|---|
| http://www.proftpd.org/ | product | |
| https://advisories.checkpoint.com/defense/advisories/public/2011/cpai-2010-151.html/ | third-party-advisoryThird Party Advisory | |
| https://github.com/proftpd/proftpd | product | |
| https://raw.githubusercontent.com/rapid7/metasploit-framework/master/modules/exploits/unix/ftp/proftpd_133c_backdoor.rb | exploitThird Party Advisory | |
| https://web.archive.org/web/20111107212129/http://rsync.proftpd.org/ | vendor-advisorypatchRelease Notes | |
| https://www.exploit-db.com/exploits/15662 | exploitVDB Entry | |
| https://www.exploit-db.com/exploits/16921 | exploitVDB Entry | |
| https://www.vulncheck.com/advisories/proftpd-backdoor-command-execution | third-party-advisoryThird Party Advisory |
Change history (0)
No recorded changes yet.