Buffer overflow in the gethostbyname_r and other unspecified NSS functions in the GNU C…
Priority LOW 38CWE-119Published · Updated
Key facts
- Attack vector
- Network
- Privileges required
- None
- User interaction
- — Not recorded in CVSS 2.0
- Attack complexity
- Medium
- Impact type
- Code execution
- Confidentiality · integrity · availability
- Partial · Partial · Partial
- Fix status
- Partial Red Hat: 20 fixed, 1 without a fix
Attack profile from CVSS 2.0 · NVD. Fix status from CNA and Red Hat. Impact type from CWE-119 and the CVSS impact.
Summary
Buffer overflow in the gethostbyname_r and other unspecified NSS functions in the GNU C Library (aka glibc or libc6) before 2.22 allows context-dependent attackers to cause a denial of service (crash) or execute arbitrary code via a crafted DNS response, which triggers a call with a misaligned buffer.
Why it matters now
EPSS 0.05012 92nd percentileScored 2026-11-07
Fix Partial Red Hat: 3 advisoriesRed Hat: 20 fixed, 1 without a fix
SSVC decision points
Not available: CISA has not published SSVC decision points for this record.
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 · 12
| CPE | Versions | Role | Vendor |
|---|---|---|---|
| cpe:2.3:a:suse:linux_enterprise_debuginfo:11:sp3:*:*:*:*:*:* | 11 sp3 | Vulnerable | SUSE |
| cpe:2.3:a:suse:linux_enterprise_debuginfo:11:sp4:*:*:*:*:*:* | 11 sp4 | Vulnerable | SUSE |
| cpe:2.3:o:suse:linux_enterprise_desktop:11:sp3:*:*:*:*:*:* | 11 sp3 | Vulnerable | SUSE |
| cpe:2.3:o:suse:linux_enterprise_desktop:11:sp4:*:*:*:*:*:* | 11 sp4 | Vulnerable | SUSE |
| cpe:2.3:o:suse:linux_enterprise_server:11:sp3:*:*:*:*:*:* | 11 sp3 | Vulnerable | SUSE |
| cpe:2.3:o:suse:linux_enterprise_server:11:sp3:*:*:*:vmware:*:* | 11 sp3 | Vulnerable | SUSE |
| cpe:2.3:o:suse:linux_enterprise_server:11:sp4:*:*:*:*:*:* | 11 sp4 | Vulnerable | SUSE |
| cpe:2.3:a:gnu:glibc:*:*:*:*:*:*:*:* | up to 2.21 | Vulnerable | GNU |
| cpe:2.3:o:debian:debian_linux:7.0:*:*:*:*:*:*:* | 7.0 | Vulnerable | Debian |
| cpe:2.3:o:canonical:ubuntu_linux:12.04:*:*:*:lts:*:*:* | 12.04 | Vulnerable | Canonical |
- cpe:2.3:a:suse:linux_enterprise_debuginfo:11:sp3:*:*:*:*:*:* Versions 11 sp3 Vulnerable ·SUSE
- cpe:2.3:a:suse:linux_enterprise_debuginfo:11:sp4:*:*:*:*:*:* Versions 11 sp4 Vulnerable ·SUSE
- cpe:2.3:o:suse:linux_enterprise_desktop:11:sp3:*:*:*:*:*:* Versions 11 sp3 Vulnerable ·SUSE
- cpe:2.3:o:suse:linux_enterprise_desktop:11:sp4:*:*:*:*:*:* Versions 11 sp4 Vulnerable ·SUSE
- cpe:2.3:o:suse:linux_enterprise_server:11:sp3:*:*:*:*:*:* Versions 11 sp3 Vulnerable ·SUSE
- cpe:2.3:o:suse:linux_enterprise_server:11:sp3:*:*:*:vmware:*:* Versions 11 sp3 Vulnerable ·SUSE
- cpe:2.3:o:suse:linux_enterprise_server:11:sp4:*:*:*:*:*:* Versions 11 sp4 Vulnerable ·SUSE
- cpe:2.3:a:gnu:glibc:*:*:*:*:*:*:*:* Versions up to 2.21 Vulnerable ·GNU
- cpe:2.3:o:debian:debian_linux:7.0:*:*:*:*:*:*:* Versions 7.0 Vulnerable ·Debian
- cpe:2.3:o:canonical:ubuntu_linux:12.04:*:*:*:lts:*:*:* Versions 12.04 Vulnerable ·Canonical
Remediation
Red Hat 3 advisories
- RHSA-2015:2589 Released 2015-12-09 · Red Hat rating Importantglibc security update
- Red Hat Enterprise Linux ComputeNode EUS (v. 7.1) glibc-2.17-79.el7_1, glibc-common-2.17-79.el7_1, glibc-devel-2.17-79.el7_1 +3
- Red Hat Enterprise Linux ComputeNode Optional EUS (v. 7.1) glibc-static-2.17-79.el7_1
- Red Hat Enterprise Linux Server EUS (v. 7.1) glibc-2.17-79.ael7b_1, glibc-2.17-79.el7_1, glibc-2.17-79.el7_1.ppc +11
- Red Hat Enterprise Linux Server Optional EUS (v. 7.1) glibc-static-2.17-79.ael7b_1, glibc-static-2.17-79.el7_1, glibc-static-2.17-79.el7_1.ppc
- RHSA-2015:2199 Released 2015-11-19 · Red Hat rating Moderateglibc security, bug fix, and enhancement update
- Red Hat Enterprise Linux Client (v. 7) glibc-2.17-105.el7, glibc-common-2.17-105.el7, glibc-devel-2.17-105.el7 +3
- Red Hat Enterprise Linux Client Optional (v. 7) glibc-static-2.17-105.el7
- Red Hat Enterprise Linux ComputeNode (v. 7) glibc-2.17-105.el7, glibc-common-2.17-105.el7, glibc-devel-2.17-105.el7 +3
- Red Hat Enterprise Linux ComputeNode Optional (v. 7) glibc-static-2.17-105.el7
- Red Hat Enterprise Linux Server (v. 7) glibc-2.17-105.el7, glibc-2.17-105.el7.ppc, glibc-common-2.17-105.el7 +5
- Red Hat Enterprise Linux Server Optional (v. 7) glibc-static-2.17-105.el7, glibc-static-2.17-105.el7.ppc
- Red Hat Enterprise Linux Workstation (v. 7) glibc-2.17-105.el7, glibc-common-2.17-105.el7, glibc-devel-2.17-105.el7 +3
- Red Hat Enterprise Linux Workstation Optional (v. 7) glibc-static-2.17-105.el7
- RHSA-2015:0863 Released 2015-04-21 · Red Hat rating Moderateglibc security and bug fix update
- Red Hat Enterprise Linux Desktop (v. 6) glibc-2.12-1.149.el6_6.7, glibc-common-2.12-1.149.el6_6.7, glibc-devel-2.12-1.149.el6_6.7 +3
- Red Hat Enterprise Linux Desktop Optional (v. 6) glibc-static-2.12-1.149.el6_6.7
- Red Hat Enterprise Linux HPC Node (v. 6) glibc-2.12-1.149.el6_6.7, glibc-common-2.12-1.149.el6_6.7, glibc-devel-2.12-1.149.el6_6.7 +3
- Red Hat Enterprise Linux HPC Node Optional (v. 6) glibc-static-2.12-1.149.el6_6.7
- Red Hat Enterprise Linux Server (v. 6) glibc-2.12-1.149.el6_6.7, glibc-2.12-1.149.el6_6.7.ppc, glibc-common-2.12-1.149.el6_6.7 +5
- Red Hat Enterprise Linux Server Optional (v. 6) glibc-static-2.12-1.149.el6_6.7, glibc-static-2.12-1.149.el6_6.7.ppc
- Red Hat Enterprise Linux Workstation (v. 6) glibc-2.12-1.149.el6_6.7, glibc-common-2.12-1.149.el6_6.7, glibc-devel-2.12-1.149.el6_6.7 +3
- Red Hat Enterprise Linux Workstation Optional (v. 6) glibc-static-2.12-1.149.el6_6.7
Vendor assessments
Red Hat
Red Hat rating: Moderate. Red Hat's page for this CVE →
| Product | Status | Plan or fix |
|---|---|---|
| Red Hat Enterprise Linux 5 | Affected | No fix planned: Will not fix |
| Red Hat Enterprise Linux Client (v. 7) | Fixed | RHSA-2015:2199 |
| Red Hat Enterprise Linux Client Optional (v. 7) | Fixed | RHSA-2015:2199 |
| Red Hat Enterprise Linux ComputeNode (v. 7) | Fixed | RHSA-2015:2199 |
| Red Hat Enterprise Linux ComputeNode EUS (v. 7.1) | Fixed | RHSA-2015:2589 |
| Red Hat Enterprise Linux ComputeNode Optional (v. 7) | Fixed | RHSA-2015:2199 |
| Red Hat Enterprise Linux ComputeNode Optional EUS (v. 7.1) | Fixed | RHSA-2015:2589 |
| Red Hat Enterprise Linux Desktop (v. 6) | Fixed | RHSA-2015:0863 |
| Red Hat Enterprise Linux Desktop Optional (v. 6) | Fixed | RHSA-2015:0863 |
| Red Hat Enterprise Linux HPC Node (v. 6) | Fixed | RHSA-2015:0863 |
| Red Hat Enterprise Linux HPC Node Optional (v. 6) | Fixed | RHSA-2015:0863 |
| Red Hat Enterprise Linux Server (v. 6) | Fixed | RHSA-2015:0863 |
| Red Hat Enterprise Linux Server (v. 7) | Fixed | RHSA-2015:2199 |
| Red Hat Enterprise Linux Server EUS (v. 7.1) | Fixed | RHSA-2015:2589 |
| Red Hat Enterprise Linux Server Optional (v. 6) | Fixed | RHSA-2015:0863 |
| Red Hat Enterprise Linux Server Optional (v. 7) | Fixed | RHSA-2015:2199 |
| Red Hat Enterprise Linux Server Optional EUS (v. 7.1) | Fixed | RHSA-2015:2589 |
| Red Hat Enterprise Linux Workstation (v. 6) | Fixed | RHSA-2015:0863 |
| Red Hat Enterprise Linux Workstation (v. 7) | Fixed | RHSA-2015:2199 |
| Red Hat Enterprise Linux Workstation Optional (v. 6) | Fixed | RHSA-2015:0863 |
| Red Hat Enterprise Linux Workstation Optional (v. 7) | Fixed | RHSA-2015:2199 |
Timeline
- 2026-10-02 Threatist record created from CVE-2015-1781
- 2026-10-03 Alias added: GHSA-w9wj-9x52-h75c
References
Advisory 11
- SUSE-SU-2015:1424
- [libc-alpha] 20150814 The GNU C Library version 2.22 is now available
- SUSE-SU-2016:0470
- USN-2985-2
- GLSA-201602-02
- http://www.oracle.com/technetwork/topics/security/linuxbulletinoct2015-2719645.html
- FEDORA-2016-0480defc94
- RHSA-2015:0863
- DSA-3480
- USN-2985-1
- https://sourceware.org/bugzilla/show_bug.cgi?id=18287
Sources
- CVE-2015-1781 · CVE Program
- CVE-2015-1781 · NVD
- FIRST EPSS
- GHSA-w9wj-9x52-h75c · GitHub Advisory Database · CC BY 4.0
- CVE-2015-1781 · Red Hat security data · CC BY 4.0
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