Description
CVS 1.12.x through 1.12.8, and 1.11.x through 1.11.16, does not properly handle malformed "Entry" lines, which prevents a NULL terminator from being used and may lead to a denial of service (crash), modification of critical program data, or arbitrary code execution.
Fixed in Linux distributions
Distributions backport fixes, so the version that fixes this vulnerability differs per release — upgrade to at least the version shown. From the distributions' security trackers and advisories.
Debian
Security tracker ↗| Release | Package | Fixed in | Advisory |
|---|---|---|---|
| Debian 14 | cvs | 1:1.12.9-1 | — |
| Debian 13 | cvs | 1:1.12.9-1 | — |
| Debian 12 | cvs | 1:1.12.9-1 | — |
| Debian 3.0 | cvs | 1.11.1p1debian-9woody6 | DSA-517 |
Red Hat
Security tracker ↗| Release | Package | Fixed in | Advisory |
|---|---|---|---|
| RHEL 3 | cvs | 1.11.2-24 | RHSA-2004:233 |
Advisories 2
- RHSA-2004:233 Red Hat Security Advisory: cvs security update Red Hat Security Advisories (RHSA) · Jun 26, 2026
- DSA-517 cvs - buffer overflow Debian Security (DSA / DLA) · Mar 9, 2026
References
- oval:org.mitre.oval:def:10575 vdb-entry signature
- http://security.e-matters.de/advisories/092004.html
- DSA-517 vendor-advisory
- oval:org.mitre.oval:def:993 vdb-entry signature
- 20040611 [OpenPKG-SA-2004.027] OpenPKG Security Advisory (cvs) mailing-list
- RHSA-2004:233 vendor-advisory
- MDKSA-2004:058 vendor-advisory
- GLSA-200406-06 vendor-advisory
- 20040609 Advisory 09/2004: More CVS remote vulnerabilities mailing-list