openssh: Leak of host private key material to privilege-separated child process via realloc()
Published Jan 5, 2017
6.2
MEDIUMCVSS 3.1
EPSS 1.10%
Description
authfile.c in sshd in OpenSSH before 7.4 does not properly consider the effects of realloc on buffer contents, which might allow local users to obtain sensitive private-key information by leveraging access to a privilege-separated child process.
Affected products
No data.
No data.
Red Hat Enterprise Linux 7
openssh-0:7.4p1-11.el7
Fixed · RHSA-2017:2029
Red Hat Enterprise Linux 4
openssh
Will not fix
Red Hat Enterprise Linux 5
openssh
Will not fix
Red Hat Enterprise Linux 6
openssh
Fix deferred
| Product | Package | State | Advisory |
|---|---|---|---|
| Red Hat Enterprise Linux 7 | openssh-0:7.4p1-11.el7 | Fixed | RHSA-2017:2029 |
| Red Hat Enterprise Linux 4 | openssh | Will not fix | n/a |
| Red Hat Enterprise Linux 5 | openssh | Will not fix | n/a |
| Red Hat Enterprise Linux 6 | openssh | Fix deferred | n/a |
No package ranges for this CVE.
Remediation
Red Hat statement
It seems that this flaw is not practically exploitable, the leak of host private key material to the privilege-separated child processes is theoretical. No such leak was observed in practice for normal-sized keys, nor does a leak to the child processes directly expose key material to unprivileged users. Because of the this restriction for successful exploitation, this issue has been rated as having Low security impact. A future update may address this flaw.
Metrics
No CVSS v4.0 score for this CVE.
CVSS:3.1/AV:L/AC:L/PR:N/UI:N/S:U/C:H/I:N/A:N
CVSS:3.0/AV:L/AC:L/PR:L/UI:N/S:U/C:H/I:N/A:N
1 other source (Red Hat) ▾
CVSS:3.0/AV:L/AC:H/PR:L/UI:N/S:U/C:L/I:N/A:N
AV:L/AC:L/Au:N/C:P/I:N/A:N
This CVE is not in the KEV list.
CISA SSVC (Vulnrichment)
Stakeholder-Specific Vulnerability Categorization from CISA ADP.
Exploitation
NoneAutomatable
NoTechnical Impact
PartialDecision
n/aAssessed May 29, 2026 · 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
2022–2026- EPSS v2
- EPSS v3
- EPSS v4
- EPSS v5
Percentile over time
- EPSS v2
- EPSS v3
- EPSS v4
- EPSS v5
Table of values (9 key points)
Flat stretches are collapsed; showing up to 120 newest points.
| Date | Score | Percentile | Model |
|---|---|---|---|
| Oct 1, 2026 | 1.10% (0.01101) | 64.47th | v5 (v2026.06.15) |
| Jun 15, 2026 | 1.10% (0.01101) | 61.28th | v5 (v2026.06.15) |
| Mar 17, 2025 | 0.01% (0.00013) | 1.09th | v4 (v2025.03.14) |
| Dec 12, 2024 | 0.04% (0.00042) | 5.07th | v3 (v2023.03.01) |
| Mar 7, 2023 | 0.04% (0.00042) | 5.63th | v3 (v2023.03.01) |
| Mar 6, 2023 | 1.28% (0.01282) | 68.34th | v2 (v2022.01.01) |
| Feb 22, 2023 | 1.28% (0.01282) | 68.05th | v2 (v2022.01.01) |
| Apr 1, 2022 | 1.28% (0.01282) | 65.91th | v2 (v2022.01.01) |
| Feb 4, 2022 | 1.28% (0.01282) | 41.72th | v2 (v2022.01.01) |
References (16)
- http://www.openwall.com/lists/oss-security/2016/12/19/2 mailing-listMailing ListRelease Notes
- http://www.securityfocus.com/bid/94977 vdb-entry
- http://www.securitytracker.com/id/1037490 vdb-entry
- http://www.slackware.com/security/viewer.php?l=slackware-security&y=2016&m=slackware-security.647637
- https://access.redhat.com/errata/RHSA-2017:2029 vendor-advisory
- https://access.redhat.com/security/cve/CVE-2016-10011 Vendor Advisory
- https://bugzilla.redhat.com/show_bug.cgi?id=1406286 Issue Tracking
- https://cert-portal.siemens.com/productcert/pdf/ssa-412672.pdf
- https://cert-portal.siemens.com/productcert/pdf/ssa-676336.pdf
- https://github.com/openbsd/src/commit/ac8147a06ed2e2403fb6b9a0c03e618a9333c0e9 Patch
- https://lists.debian.org/debian-lts-announce/2018/09/msg00010.html mailing-list
- https://nvd.nist.gov/vuln/detail/CVE-2016-10011
- https://security.netapp.com/advisory/ntap-20171130-0002/
- https://support.hpe.com/hpsc/doc/public/display?docLocale=en_US&docId=emr_na-hpesbux03818en_us
- https://www.cve.org/CVERecord?id=CVE-2016-10011
- https://www.openssh.com/txt/release-7.4
Change history (0)
No recorded changes yet.