Exim 4.72 and earlier allows local users to gain privileges by leveraging the ability of…
Priority CRITICAL 93Exploited in the wildCWE-77Published · Updated
Key facts
- Attack vector
- Local
- Privileges required
- Low
- User interaction
- None
- Attack complexity
- Low
- Impact type
- Code execution
- Confidentiality · integrity · availability
- High · High · High
- Fix status
- Fixed
Attack profile from CVSS 3.1 · CISA ADP. Fix status from CNA and Red Hat. Impact type from CWE-77.
Summary
Exim 4.72 and earlier allows local users to gain privileges by leveraging the ability of the exim user account to specify an alternate configuration file with a directive that contains arbitrary commands, as demonstrated by the spool_directory directive.
Why it matters now
Exploitation Active In CISA KEV since 2022-03-25CISA due date 2022-04-15
EPSS 0.17965 97th percentileScored 2026-11-07
Fix Fixed Red Hat: 1 advisory
SSVC decision points
CISA ADP · SSVC 2.0.3
- Exploitation
- Active
- Automatable
- No
- Technical impact
- Total
The decision (Track, Attend, Act) also depends on your mission and well-being impact; see CISA's SSVC guide.
Affected products
| Vendor | Product | Affected versions | Fixed in | Status | Source |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| — | — | all versions | — | No fix listed | CNA |
- — Vendor— Affected all versions Fixed in — No fix listed CNA
CPE configurations NVD · 10
| CPE | Versions | Role | Vendor |
|---|---|---|---|
| cpe:2.3:a:exim:exim:*:*:*:*:*:*:*:* | up to 4.72 | Vulnerable | Exim |
| cpe:2.3:o:opensuse:opensuse:11.1:*:*:*:*:*:*:* | 11.1 | Vulnerable | openSUSE |
| cpe:2.3:o:opensuse:opensuse:11.2:*:*:*:*:*:*:* | 11.2 | Vulnerable | openSUSE |
| cpe:2.3:o:opensuse:opensuse:11.3:*:*:*:*:*:*:* | 11.3 | Vulnerable | openSUSE |
| cpe:2.3:o:debian:debian_linux:5.0:*:*:*:*:*:*:* | 5.0 | Vulnerable | Debian |
| cpe:2.3:o:canonical:ubuntu_linux:6.06:*:*:*:*:*:*:* | 6.06 | Vulnerable | Canonical |
| cpe:2.3:o:canonical:ubuntu_linux:8.04:*:*:*:-:*:*:* | 8.04 | Vulnerable | Canonical |
| cpe:2.3:o:canonical:ubuntu_linux:9.10:*:*:*:*:*:*:* | 9.10 | Vulnerable | Canonical |
| cpe:2.3:o:canonical:ubuntu_linux:10.04:*:*:*:-:*:*:* | 10.04 | Vulnerable | Canonical |
| cpe:2.3:o:canonical:ubuntu_linux:10.10:*:*:*:*:*:*:* | 10.10 | Vulnerable | Canonical |
- cpe:2.3:a:exim:exim:*:*:*:*:*:*:*:* Versions up to 4.72 Vulnerable ·Exim
- cpe:2.3:o:opensuse:opensuse:11.1:*:*:*:*:*:*:* Versions 11.1 Vulnerable ·openSUSE
- cpe:2.3:o:opensuse:opensuse:11.2:*:*:*:*:*:*:* Versions 11.2 Vulnerable ·openSUSE
- cpe:2.3:o:opensuse:opensuse:11.3:*:*:*:*:*:*:* Versions 11.3 Vulnerable ·openSUSE
- cpe:2.3:o:debian:debian_linux:5.0:*:*:*:*:*:*:* Versions 5.0 Vulnerable ·Debian
- cpe:2.3:o:canonical:ubuntu_linux:6.06:*:*:*:*:*:*:* Versions 6.06 Vulnerable ·Canonical
- cpe:2.3:o:canonical:ubuntu_linux:8.04:*:*:*:-:*:*:* Versions 8.04 Vulnerable ·Canonical
- cpe:2.3:o:canonical:ubuntu_linux:9.10:*:*:*:*:*:*:* Versions 9.10 Vulnerable ·Canonical
- cpe:2.3:o:canonical:ubuntu_linux:10.04:*:*:*:-:*:*:* Versions 10.04 Vulnerable ·Canonical
- cpe:2.3:o:canonical:ubuntu_linux:10.10:*:*:*:*:*:*:* Versions 10.10 Vulnerable ·Canonical
Remediation
Red Hat 1 advisory
- RHSA-2011:0153 Released 2011-01-17 · Red Hat rating Moderateexim security update
- Red Hat Enterprise Linux (v. 5.6.z server) exim-4.63-5.el5_6.2, exim-4.63-5.el5_6.2.i386, exim-4.63-5.el5_6.2.ia64 +9
- Red Hat Enterprise Linux AS version 4 exim-4.43-1.RHEL4.5.el4_8.3, exim-4.43-1.RHEL4.5.el4_8.3.i386, exim-4.43-1.RHEL4.5.el4_8.3.ia64 +13
- Red Hat Enterprise Linux Desktop version 4 exim-4.43-1.RHEL4.5.el4_8.3, exim-4.43-1.RHEL4.5.el4_8.3.i386, exim-doc-4.43-1.RHEL4.5.el4_8.3 +5
- Red Hat Enterprise Linux ES version 4 exim-4.43-1.RHEL4.5.el4_8.3, exim-4.43-1.RHEL4.5.el4_8.3.i386, exim-4.43-1.RHEL4.5.el4_8.3.ia64 +9
- Red Hat Enterprise Linux WS version 4 exim-4.43-1.RHEL4.5.el4_8.3, exim-4.43-1.RHEL4.5.el4_8.3.i386, exim-4.43-1.RHEL4.5.el4_8.3.ia64 +9
Vendor assessments
Red Hat
Red Hat rating: Moderate. Red Hat's page for this CVE →
| Product | Status | Plan or fix |
|---|---|---|
| Red Hat Enterprise Linux (v. 5.6.z server) | Fixed | RHSA-2011:0153 |
| Red Hat Enterprise Linux AS version 4 | Fixed | RHSA-2011:0153 |
| Red Hat Enterprise Linux Desktop version 4 | Fixed | RHSA-2011:0153 |
| Red Hat Enterprise Linux ES version 4 | Fixed | RHSA-2011:0153 |
| Red Hat Enterprise Linux WS version 4 | Fixed | RHSA-2011:0153 |
Timeline
- 2022-03-25 Added to CISA KEV
- 2026-10-02 Threatist record created from CVE-2010-4345
- 2026-10-03 Alias added: GHSA-qq6c-p3fx-6qcx
References
Patch 3
Advisory 11
More Exim vulnerabilities
- TI-2019-12627 Exim 4.92 through 4.92.2 allows remote code execution, a different vulnerability than… KEVCVSS 3.1CRITICAL 9.8
- TI-2019-07471 OS command injection in exim KEVCVSS 3.1CRITICAL 9.8
- TI-2018-04965 An issue was discovered in the base64d function in the SMTP listener in Exim before… KEVCVSS 3.1CRITICAL 9.8
- TI-2010-04077 Heap-based buffer overflow in the string_vformat function in string.c in Exim before 4.70… KEVCVSS 3.1CRITICAL 9.8
- TI-2025-19707 SQL injection in Exim CVSS 3.1CRITICAL 9.8
- TI-2023-22483 Out-of-bounds write in Exim CVSS 3.0CRITICAL 9.8
Sources
- CVE-2010-4345 · CVE Program
- CVE-2010-4345 · NVD
- CISA Known Exploited Vulnerabilities
- FIRST EPSS
- GHSA-qq6c-p3fx-6qcx · GitHub Advisory Database · CC BY 4.0
- CVE-2010-4345 · Red Hat security data · CC BY 4.0
This product uses the NVD API but is not endorsed or certified by the NVD. Sources and licences