Description
An issue was discovered in Mutt before 1.10.1 and NeoMutt before 2018-07-16. They allow remote IMAP servers to execute arbitrary commands via backquote characters, related to the mailboxes command associated with an automatic subscription.
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 | mutt | 1.10.1-1 | — |
| Debian 14 | neomutt | 20180716+dfsg.1-1 | — |
| Debian 13 | mutt | 1.10.1-1 | — |
| Debian 13 | neomutt | 20180716+dfsg.1-1 | — |
| Debian 12 | mutt | 1.10.1-1 | — |
| Debian 12 | neomutt | 20180716+dfsg.1-1 | — |
| Debian 9 | mutt | 1.7.2-1+deb9u1 | DSA-4277-1 |
| Debian 8 | mutt | 1.5.23-3+deb8u1 | DLA-1455-1 |
Ubuntu
Security tracker ↗| Release | Package | Fixed in | Advisory |
|---|---|---|---|
| Ubuntu 18.04 LTS | mutt | 1.9.4-3ubuntu0.1 | USN-3719-1 |
| Ubuntu 16.04 LTS | mutt | 1.5.24-1ubuntu0.2 | USN-3719-3, USN-3719-1 |
| Ubuntu 14.04 LTS | mutt | 1.5.21-6.4ubuntu2.2 | USN-3719-1 |
Show 4 more (older releases, extended support, other products)Fewer releases
| Release | Package | Fixed in | Advisory |
|---|---|---|---|
| Ubuntu Pro 24.04 LTS | neomutt | 20231103+dfsg1-1ubuntu0.1~esm1 | USN-7204-1 |
| Ubuntu Pro 22.04 LTS | neomutt | 20211029+dfsg1-1ubuntu0.1~esm1 | USN-7204-1 |
| Ubuntu Pro 20.04 LTS | neomutt | 20191207+dfsg.1-1.1ubuntu0.1~esm1 | USN-7204-1 |
| Ubuntu Pro 18.04 LTS | neomutt | 20171215+dfsg.1-1ubuntu0.1~esm1 | USN-7204-1 |
Red Hat
Security tracker ↗| Release | Package | Fixed in | Advisory |
|---|---|---|---|
| RHEL 7 | mutt | 5:1.5.21-28.el7_5 | RHSA-2018:2526 |
| RHEL 6 | mutt | 5:1.5.20-9.20091214hg736b6a.el6 | RHSA-2018:2526 |
SUSE
Security tracker ↗| Release | Package | Fixed in | Advisory |
|---|---|---|---|
| SLES 15 | mutt | 1.10.1-3.3.4 | SUSE-SU-2018:2085-1 |
| SLES 12 SP3 | mutt | 1.10.1-55.3.1 | SUSE-SU-2019:1196-1, SUSE-SU-2018:2084-1 |
| SLES 11 SP4 | mutt | 1.5.17-42.43.1 | SUSE-SU-2018:2403-1 |
| SLES 11 SP3 | mutt | 1.5.17-42.43.1 | SUSE-SU-2018:2403-1 |
Show 3 more (older releases, extended support, other products)Fewer releases
| Release | Package | Fixed in | Advisory |
|---|---|---|---|
| SLES for SAP 12 SP3 | mutt | 1.10.1-55.3.1 | SUSE-SU-2019:1196-1, SUSE-SU-2018:2084-1 |
| SLES for SAP 11 SP4 | mutt | 1.5.17-42.43.1 | SUSE-SU-2018:2403-1 |
| SUSE Linux Enterprise Point of Sale 11 SP3 | mutt | 1.5.17-42.43.1 | SUSE-SU-2018:2403-1 |
openSUSE
Security tracker ↗| Release | Package | Fixed in | Advisory |
|---|---|---|---|
| openSUSE Tumbleweed | mutt | 2.0.7-2.2 | openSUSE-SU-2024:11069-1 |
| openSUSE Tumbleweed | neomutt | 20210205-3.3 | openSUSE-SU-2024:11079-1 |
Alpine
Security tracker ↗| Release | Package | Fixed in | Advisory |
|---|---|---|---|
| Alpine v3.8 | mutt | 1.10.1-r0 | — |
| Alpine v3.7 | mutt | 1.10.1-r0 | — |
| Alpine v3.6 | mutt | 1.10.1-r0 | — |
| Alpine v3.5 | mutt | 1.10.1-r0 | — |
Amazon Linux
| Release | Package | Fixed in | Advisory |
|---|---|---|---|
| Amazon Linux 2 | mutt | 5:1.5.21-28.amzn2 | ALAS2-2018-1077 |
Oracle Linux
| Release | Package | Fixed in | Advisory |
|---|---|---|---|
| Oracle Linux 7 | mutt | 5:1.5.21-28.el7_5 | ELSA-2018-2526 |
Advisories 15
- RHSA-2018:2526 Red Hat Security Advisory: mutt security update Red Hat Security Advisories (RHSA) · Jun 26, 2026
- USN-7204-1 neomutt vulnerabilities Ubuntu Security Notices (USN) · Apr 27, 2026
- DSA-4277-1 mutt - security update Debian Security (DSA / DLA) · Mar 9, 2026
- DLA-1455-1 mutt - security update Debian Security (DSA / DLA) · Mar 9, 2026
- USN-3719-1 mutt vulnerabilities Ubuntu Security Notices (USN) · Feb 10, 2026
- USN-3719-3 mutt vulnerabilities Ubuntu Security Notices (USN) · Feb 10, 2026
- SUSE-SU-2018:2084-1 Security update for mutt SUSE / openSUSE Security Updates · Feb 4, 2026
- openSUSE-SU-2024:11069-1 mutt-2.0.7-2.2 on GA media SUSE / openSUSE Security Updates · Feb 4, 2026
- SUSE-SU-2019:1196-1 Security update for mutt SUSE / openSUSE Security Updates · Feb 4, 2026
- SUSE-SU-2018:2403-1 Security update for mutt SUSE / openSUSE Security Updates · Feb 4, 2026
- SUSE-SU-2018:2085-1 Security update for mutt SUSE / openSUSE Security Updates · Feb 4, 2026
- openSUSE-SU-2024:11079-1 neomutt-20210205-3.3 on GA media SUSE / openSUSE Security Updates · Feb 4, 2026
- WID-SEC-2025-0102 mutt: Mehrere Schwachstellen BSI CERT-Bund (WID) · Jan 15, 2025
- ALAS2-2018-1077 Important: mutt security update (Amazon Linux 2) Amazon Linux Security Center (ALAS) · Sep 15, 2018
- ELSA-2018-2526 Important: mutt security update (Oracle Linux 7) Oracle Linux Security Advisories (ELSA) · Aug 20, 2018
References
- RHSA-2018:2526 vendor-advisory
- https://gitlab.com/muttmua/mutt/commit/185152818541f5cdc059cbff3f3e8b654fc27c1d
- USN-3719-3 vendor-advisory
- DSA-4277 vendor-advisory
- [debian-lts-announce] 20180802 [SECURITY] [DLA 1455-1] mutt security update mailing-list
- https://github.com/neomutt/neomutt/commit/e52393740334443ae0206cab2d7caef381646725
- GLSA-201810-07 vendor-advisory
- http://www.mutt.org/news.html
- https://neomutt.org/2018/07/16/release
- USN-3719-1 vendor-advisory