binutils: memory leak in _bfd_generic_read_minisymbols function in syms.c
Published Dec 10, 2018
5.5
MEDIUMCVSS 3.0
EPSS 1.82%
Description
The _bfd_generic_read_minisymbols function in syms.c in the Binary File Descriptor (BFD) library (aka libbfd), as distributed in GNU Binutils 2.31, has a memory leak via a crafted ELF file, leading to a denial of service (memory consumption), as demonstrated by nm.
Affected products
No data.
Configuration 2
- ≥ 7.2
Running on/with
- n/a
Configuration 3
- ≥ 5.0.0 · ≤ 5.1.0
- 4.4.0
No data.
Red Hat Enterprise Linux 5
binutils
Will not fix
Red Hat Enterprise Linux 5
binutils220
Will not fix
Red Hat Enterprise Linux 6
binutils
Will not fix
Red Hat Enterprise Linux 7
binutils
Will not fix
Red Hat Enterprise Linux 8
binutils
Will not fix
Red Hat Enterprise Linux 8
mingw-binutils
Will not fix
| Product | Package | State | Advisory |
|---|---|---|---|
| Red Hat Enterprise Linux 5 | binutils | Will not fix | n/a |
| Red Hat Enterprise Linux 5 | binutils220 | Will not fix | n/a |
| Red Hat Enterprise Linux 6 | binutils | Will not fix | n/a |
| Red Hat Enterprise Linux 7 | binutils | Will not fix | n/a |
| Red Hat Enterprise Linux 8 | binutils | Will not fix | n/a |
| Red Hat Enterprise Linux 8 | mingw-binutils | Will not fix | n/a |
No package ranges for this CVE.
Remediation
Red Hat statement
This vulnerability was rated as LOW severity because it requires the victim to open a specially crafted file, it does not result in system compromise, it can cause the application to consume excessive memory and crash.
Metrics
No CVSS v4.0 score for this CVE.
No CVSS v3.1 score for this CVE.
CVSS:3.0/AV:L/AC:L/PR:N/UI:R/S:U/C:N/I:N/A:H
1 other source (Red Hat) ▾
CVSS:3.0/AV:L/AC:L/PR:N/UI:R/S:U/C:N/I:N/A:L
AV:N/AC:M/Au:N/C:N/I:N/A:P
This CVE is not in the KEV list.
No CISA SSVC assessment for this CVE yet.
Estimated probability of exploitation in the wild in the next 30 days (FIRST EPSS). As of Oct 1, 2026.
Score over time
2021–2026- EPSS v1
- EPSS v5
- EPSS v2
- EPSS v3
- EPSS v4
Percentile over time
- EPSS v1
- EPSS v5
- EPSS v2
- EPSS v3
- EPSS v4
Table of values (20 key points)
Flat stretches are collapsed; showing up to 120 newest points.
| Date | Score | Percentile | Model |
|---|---|---|---|
| Oct 1, 2026 | 1.82% (0.01819) | 77.95th | v5 (v2026.06.15) |
| Sep 22, 2026 | 1.82% (0.01819) | 77.79th | v5 (v2026.06.15) |
| Sep 21, 2026 | 3.02% (0.03019) | 86.80th | v5 (v2026.06.15) |
| Sep 6, 2026 | 1.82% (0.01819) | 77.30th | v5 (v2026.06.15) |
| Sep 5, 2026 | 3.02% (0.03019) | 86.52th | v5 (v2026.06.15) |
| Aug 30, 2026 | 1.82% (0.01819) | 77.19th | v5 (v2026.06.15) |
| Aug 28, 2026 | 3.02% (0.03019) | 86.44th | v5 (v2026.06.15) |
| Aug 24, 2026 | 1.82% (0.01819) | 77.06th | v5 (v2026.06.15) |
| Aug 23, 2026 | 3.02% (0.03019) | 86.38th | v5 (v2026.06.15) |
| Jun 15, 2026 | 1.82% (0.01819) | 75.85th | v5 (v2026.06.15) |
| Mar 17, 2025 | 0.35% (0.00349) | 55.20th | v4 (v2025.03.14) |
| Dec 12, 2024 | 0.21% (0.00207) | 59.64th | v3 (v2023.03.01) |
| May 23, 2024 | 0.17% (0.00173) | 54.46th | v3 (v2023.03.01) |
| May 2, 2024 | 0.21% (0.00207) | 58.37th | v3 (v2023.03.01) |
| Dec 3, 2023 | 0.15% (0.00146) | 50.25th | v3 (v2023.03.01) |
| Mar 7, 2023 | 0.12% (0.00123) | 44.92th | v3 (v2023.03.01) |
| Mar 6, 2023 | 1.11% (0.01108) | 55.18th | v2 (v2022.01.01) |
| Feb 4, 2022 | 1.11% (0.01108) | 29.61th | v2 (v2022.01.01) |
| Feb 3, 2022 | 2.06% (0.02061) | 50.21th | v5 (v2026.06.15) |
| Apr 14, 2021 | 2.06% (0.02061) | 0.00th | v1 |
References (11)
- http://www.securityfocus.com/bid/106142 vdb-entryx_refsource_BIDThird Party AdvisoryVDB Entry
- https://access.redhat.com/security/cve/CVE-2018-20002 Vendor Advisory
- https://bugzilla.redhat.com/show_bug.cgi?id=1661534 Issue Tracking
- https://nvd.nist.gov/vuln/detail/CVE-2018-20002
- https://security.gentoo.org/glsa/201908-01 vendor-advisoryx_refsource_GENTOO
- https://security.netapp.com/advisory/ntap-20190221-0004/ x_refsource_CONFIRMPatchThird Party Advisory
- https://sourceware.org/bugzilla/show_bug.cgi?id=23952 x_refsource_MISCExploitIssue TrackingThird Party Advisory
- https://sourceware.org/git/gitweb.cgi?p=binutils-gdb.git%3Bh=c2f5dc30afa34696f2da0081c4ac50b958ecb0e9 x_refsource_MISC
- https://support.f5.com/csp/article/K62602089 x_refsource_CONFIRMThird Party Advisory
- https://usn.ubuntu.com/4336-1/ vendor-advisoryx_refsource_UBUNTU
- https://www.cve.org/CVERecord?id=CVE-2018-20002
| Link | Providers | Tags |
|---|---|---|
| http://www.securityfocus.com/bid/106142 | vdb-entryx_refsource_BIDThird Party AdvisoryVDB Entry | |
| https://access.redhat.com/security/cve/CVE-2018-20002 | Vendor Advisory | |
| https://bugzilla.redhat.com/show_bug.cgi?id=1661534 | Issue Tracking | |
| https://nvd.nist.gov/vuln/detail/CVE-2018-20002 | ||
| https://security.gentoo.org/glsa/201908-01 | vendor-advisoryx_refsource_GENTOO | |
| https://security.netapp.com/advisory/ntap-20190221-0004/ | x_refsource_CONFIRMPatchThird Party Advisory | |
| https://sourceware.org/bugzilla/show_bug.cgi?id=23952 | x_refsource_MISCExploitIssue TrackingThird Party Advisory | |
| https://sourceware.org/git/gitweb.cgi?p=binutils-gdb.git%3Bh=c2f5dc30afa34696f2da0081c4ac50b958ecb0e9 | x_refsource_MISC | |
| https://support.f5.com/csp/article/K62602089 | x_refsource_CONFIRMThird Party Advisory | |
| https://usn.ubuntu.com/4336-1/ | vendor-advisoryx_refsource_UBUNTU | |
| https://www.cve.org/CVERecord?id=CVE-2018-20002 |
Change history (0)
No recorded changes yet.