Improper input validation in [UNKNOWN] dovecot
Priority MEDIUM 40CWE-20Published · Updated
Key facts
- Attack vector
- Network
- Privileges required
- None
- User interaction
- None
- Attack complexity
- Low
- Impact type
- —
- Confidentiality · integrity · availability
- None · None · High
- Fix status
- No fix listed
Attack profile from CVSS 3.0 · NVD. Fix status from CNA.
Summary
Dovecot before version 2.2.29 is vulnerable to a denial of service. When 'dict' passdb and userdb were used for user authentication, the username sent by the IMAP/POP3 client was sent through var_expand() to perform %variable expansion. Sending specially crafted %variable fields could result in excessive memory usage causing the process to crash (and restart), or excessive CPU usage causing all authentications to hang.
Why it matters now
EPSS 0.04307 91st percentileScored 2026-11-07
Fix No fix listed No fixed version in the sources yet
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 |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| [UNKNOWN] | dovecot | dovecot 2.2.29 | — | No fix listed | CNA |
- dovecot Vendor[UNKNOWN] Affected dovecot 2.2.29 Fixed in — No fix listed CNA
CPE configurations NVD · 2
| CPE | Versions | Role | Vendor |
|---|---|---|---|
| cpe:2.3:a:dovecot:dovecot:*:*:*:*:*:*:*:* | 2.2.26 – 2.2.28 | Vulnerable | The Dovecot Project |
| cpe:2.3:o:debian:debian_linux:8.0:*:*:*:*:*:*:* | 8.0 | Vulnerable | Debian |
- cpe:2.3:a:dovecot:dovecot:*:*:*:*:*:*:*:* Versions 2.2.26 – 2.2.28 Vulnerable ·The Dovecot Project
- cpe:2.3:o:debian:debian_linux:8.0:*:*:*:*:*:*:* Versions 8.0 Vulnerable ·Debian
Remediation
No fixed version listed by the sources yet.
Vendor assessments
Red Hat
Red Hat rating: Low. Red Hat's page for this CVE →
Not affected: 3 products
- Red Hat Enterprise Linux 5
- Red Hat Enterprise Linux 6
- Red Hat Enterprise Linux 7
Timeline
- 2026-10-02 Threatist record created from CVE-2017-2669
- 2026-10-03 Alias added: GHSA-qchv-9m57-q82h
References
Sources
- CVE-2017-2669 · CVE Program
- CVE-2017-2669 · NVD
- FIRST EPSS
- GHSA-qchv-9m57-q82h · GitHub Advisory Database · CC BY 4.0
- CVE-2017-2669 · Red Hat security data · CC BY 4.0
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