CVE-2010-4051

CVE-2010-4051 is a medium-severity vulnerability in Gnu Glibc with a CVSS 2.0 base score of 5.0. Its EPSS exploit-prediction score of 40% places it in the 98th percentile, indicating an elevated likelihood of exploitation.

Key facts

Description

The regcomp implementation in the GNU C Library (aka glibc or libc6) through 2.11.3, and 2.12.x through 2.12.2, allows context-dependent attackers to cause a denial of service (application crash) via a regular expression containing adjacent bounded repetitions that bypass the intended RE_DUP_MAX limitation, as demonstrated by a {10,}{10,}{10,}{10,}{10,} sequence in the proftpd.gnu.c exploit for ProFTPD, related to a "RE_DUP_MAX overflow."

Frequently asked questions

What is CVE-2010-4051?
The regcomp implementation in the GNU C Library (aka glibc or libc6) through 2.11.3, and 2.12.x through 2.12.2, allows context-dependent attackers to cause a denial of service (application crash) via a regular expression containing adjacent bounded repetitions that bypass the intended RE_DUP_MAX limitation, as demonstrated by a {10,}{10,}{10,}{10,}{10,} sequence in the proftpd.gnu.c exploit for ProFTPD, related to a "RE_DUP_MAX overflow."
How severe is CVE-2010-4051?
CVE-2010-4051 has a CVSS 2.0 base score of 5.0, rated medium severity.
Is CVE-2010-4051 being actively exploited?
It is not currently listed in CISA's KEV catalog. Its EPSS exploit-prediction score is 40% (98th percentile), an estimate of the probability of exploitation in the next 30 days.
What products are affected by CVE-2010-4051?
CVE-2010-4051 primarily affects Gnu Glibc. In total, 28 product configurations (CPEs) are listed as vulnerable; see the affected-products list for the exact versions.
How do I fix CVE-2010-4051?
Review the linked vendor and NVD advisories for patched versions and mitigations, then upgrade or apply the recommended workaround.
When was CVE-2010-4051 published?
CVE-2010-4051 was published on 2011-01-13 and last updated on 2026-06-16.

References

Affected products (28)

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