How severe is CVE-2009-2697?

CVE-2009-2697 has a CVSS 2.0 base score of 6.8, rated medium severity.

Is CVE-2009-2697 being actively exploited?

It is not currently listed in CISA's KEV catalog. Its EPSS exploit-prediction score is 2% (77th percentile), an estimate of the probability of exploitation in the next 30 days.

What products are affected by CVE-2009-2697?

CVE-2009-2697 primarily affects Gnome Gdm. In total, 13 product configurations (CPEs) are listed as vulnerable; see the affected-products list for the exact versions.

How do I fix CVE-2009-2697?

Review the linked vendor and NVD advisories for patched versions and mitigations, then upgrade or apply the recommended workaround.

When was CVE-2009-2697 published?

CVE-2009-2697 was published on 2009-09-04 and last updated on 2026-06-16.

CVE-2009-2697

CVE-2009-2697 is a medium-severity vulnerability in Gnome Gdm with a CVSS 2.0 base score of 6.8. It is not currently listed as actively exploited by CISA, and its EPSS exploit-prediction score is low. The underlying weakness is classified as CWE-287.

Key facts

Severity: Medium (CVSS 2.0 base score 6.8)
EPSS exploit prediction: 2% (77th percentile)
Actively exploited: Not listed in CISA KEV
Weakness: CWE-287
Affected product: Gnome Gdm
Published: 2009-09-04
Last modified: 2026-06-16

Description

The Red Hat build script for the GNOME Display Manager (GDM) before 2.16.0-56 on Red Hat Enterprise Linux (RHEL) 5 omits TCP Wrapper support, which might allow remote attackers to bypass intended access restrictions via XDMCP connections, a different vulnerability than CVE-2007-5079.

Frequently asked questions

What is CVE-2009-2697?: The Red Hat build script for the GNOME Display Manager (GDM) before 2.16.0-56 on Red Hat Enterprise Linux (RHEL) 5 omits TCP Wrapper support, which might allow remote attackers to bypass intended access restrictions via XDMCP connections, a different vulnerability than CVE-2007-5079.
How severe is CVE-2009-2697?: CVE-2009-2697 has a CVSS 2.0 base score of 6.8, rated medium severity.
Is CVE-2009-2697 being actively exploited?: It is not currently listed in CISA's KEV catalog. Its EPSS exploit-prediction score is 2% (77th percentile), an estimate of the probability of exploitation in the next 30 days.
What products are affected by CVE-2009-2697?: CVE-2009-2697 primarily affects Gnome Gdm. In total, 13 product configurations (CPEs) are listed as vulnerable; see the affected-products list for the exact versions.
How do I fix CVE-2009-2697?: Review the linked vendor and NVD advisories for patched versions and mitigations, then upgrade or apply the recommended workaround.
When was CVE-2009-2697 published?: CVE-2009-2697 was published on 2009-09-04 and last updated on 2026-06-16.

References

Affected products (13)

cpe:2.3:a:gnome:gdm:*:*:*:*:*:*:*:*
cpe:2.3:a:gnome:gdm:0.7:*:*:*:*:*:*:*
cpe:2.3:a:gnome:gdm:1.0:*:*:*:*:*:*:*
cpe:2.3:a:gnome:gdm:2.0:*:*:*:*:*:*:*
cpe:2.3:a:gnome:gdm:2.2:*:*:*:*:*:*:*
cpe:2.3:a:gnome:gdm:2.3:*:*:*:*:*:*:*
cpe:2.3:a:gnome:gdm:2.4:*:*:*:*:*:*:*
cpe:2.3:a:gnome:gdm:2.5:*:*:*:*:*:*:*
cpe:2.3:a:gnome:gdm:2.6:*:*:*:*:*:*:*
cpe:2.3:a:gnome:gdm:2.8:*:*:*:*:*:*:*
cpe:2.3:a:gnome:gdm:2.13:*:*:*:*:*:*:*
cpe:2.3:a:gnome:gdm:2.14:*:*:*:*:*:*:*
cpe:2.3:a:gnome:gdm:2.15:*:*:*:*:*:*:*

More vulnerabilities in Gnome Gdm

CVE-2000-0491 — Critical (CVSS 10.0): Buffer overflow in the XDMCP parsing code of GNOME gdm, KDE kdm, and wdm allows remote attackers to execute arbitrary…
CVE-2011-1709 — High (CVSS 7.2): GNOME Display Manager (gdm) before 2.32.2, when glib 2.28 is used, enables execution of a web browser with the uid of…
CVE-2011-0727 — Medium (CVSS 6.9): GNOME Display Manager (gdm) 2.x before 2.32.1 allows local users to change the ownership of arbitrary files via a…
CVE-2003-0548 — Medium (CVSS 5.0): The X Display Manager Control Protocol (XDMCP) support for GDM before 2.4.1.6 allows attackers to cause a denial of…
CVE-2003-0549 — Medium (CVSS 5.0): The X Display Manager Control Protocol (XDMCP) support for GDM before 2.4.1.6 allows attackers to cause a denial of…
CVE-2000-0504 — Medium (CVSS 5.0): libICE in XFree86 allows remote attackers to cause a denial of service by specifying a large value which is not…

All CVEs affecting Gnome Gdm →

Other CWE-287 (Improper Authentication) vulnerabilities

CVE-2026-20317 — Critical (CVSS 10.0): As part of Cisco's ongoing commitment to proactive security and product quality, the Cisco Secure Workload engineering…
CVE-2026-19977 — Critical (CVSS 10.0): A vulnerability was detected in EFM ipTIME A3004T 14.19.0. The affected element is the function…
CVE-2026-59500 — Critical (CVSS 10.0): CWE-287: Improper Authentication
CVE-2024-27253 — Critical (CVSS 10.0): IBM DOORS Next 7.0.3 through 7.0.3 Interim Fix 018 could allow an authenticated user to bypass security logic to…
CVE-2026-56162 — Critical (CVSS 10.0): Improper authentication in Azure SQL Database allows an unauthorized attacker to elevate privileges over a network.
CVE-2026-62825 — Critical (CVSS 10.0): Improper authentication in Azure Key Vault allows an unauthorized attacker to elevate privileges over a network.

Browse all CWE-287 (Improper Authentication) vulnerabilities →