How severe is CVE-2017-7518?

CVE-2017-7518 has a CVSS 3.x base score of 5.5, rated medium severity. It is exploitable over an adjacent network with low attack complexity, requires low privileges and no user interaction. Impact on confidentiality is low, integrity low, and availability low.

Is CVE-2017-7518 being actively exploited?

It is not currently listed in CISA's KEV catalog. Its EPSS exploit-prediction score is 1% (49th percentile), an estimate of the probability of exploitation in the next 30 days.

What products are affected by CVE-2017-7518?

CVE-2017-7518 primarily affects Redhat Enterprise Linux. In total, 12 product configurations (CPEs) are listed as vulnerable; see the affected-products list for the exact versions.

How do I fix CVE-2017-7518?

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

When was CVE-2017-7518 published?

CVE-2017-7518 was published on 2018-07-30 and last updated on 2026-06-17.

CVE-2017-7518

CVE-2017-7518 is a medium-severity vulnerability in Redhat Enterprise Linux with a CVSS 3.x base score of 5.5. 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-755.

Key facts

Severity: Medium (CVSS 3.x base score 5.5)
CVSS v2: 4.6
EPSS exploit prediction: 1% (49th percentile)
Actively exploited: Not listed in CISA KEV
Weakness: CWE-755
Affected product: Redhat Enterprise Linux
Published: 2018-07-30
Last modified: 2026-06-17

Description

A flaw was found in the Linux kernel before version 4.12 in the way the KVM module processed the trap flag(TF) bit in EFLAGS during emulation of the syscall instruction, which leads to a debug exception(#DB) being raised in the guest stack. A user/process inside a guest could use this flaw to potentially escalate their privileges inside the guest. Linux guests are not affected by this.

Frequently asked questions

What is CVE-2017-7518?: A flaw was found in the Linux kernel before version 4.12 in the way the KVM module processed the trap flag(TF) bit in EFLAGS during emulation of the syscall instruction, which leads to a debug exception(#DB) being raised in the guest stack. A user/process inside a guest could use this flaw to potentially escalate their privileges inside the guest. Linux guests are not affected by this.
How severe is CVE-2017-7518?: CVE-2017-7518 has a CVSS 3.x base score of 5.5, rated medium severity. It is exploitable over an adjacent network with low attack complexity, requires low privileges and no user interaction. Impact on confidentiality is low, integrity low, and availability low.
Is CVE-2017-7518 being actively exploited?: It is not currently listed in CISA's KEV catalog. Its EPSS exploit-prediction score is 1% (49th percentile), an estimate of the probability of exploitation in the next 30 days.
What products are affected by CVE-2017-7518?: CVE-2017-7518 primarily affects Redhat Enterprise Linux. In total, 12 product configurations (CPEs) are listed as vulnerable; see the affected-products list for the exact versions.
How do I fix CVE-2017-7518?: Review the linked vendor and NVD advisories for patched versions and mitigations, then upgrade or apply the recommended workaround.
When was CVE-2017-7518 published?: CVE-2017-7518 was published on 2018-07-30 and last updated on 2026-06-17.

References

Affected products (12)

cpe:2.3:o:redhat:enterprise_linux:7.0:*:*:*:*:*:*:*
cpe:2.3:o:redhat:enterprise_linux_desktop:7.0:*:*:*:*:*:*:*
cpe:2.3:o:redhat:enterprise_linux_server:7.0:*:*:*:*:*:*:*
cpe:2.3:o:redhat:enterprise_linux_server_aus:7.4:*:*:*:*:*:*:*
cpe:2.3:o:redhat:enterprise_linux_server_eus:7.4:*:*:*:*:*:*:*
cpe:2.3:o:redhat:enterprise_linux_server_eus:7.5:*:*:*:*:*:*:*
cpe:2.3:o:redhat:enterprise_linux_workstation:7.0:*:*:*:*:*:*:*
cpe:2.3:o:canonical:ubuntu_linux:14.04:*:*:*:lts:*:*:*
cpe:2.3:o:canonical:ubuntu_linux:16.04:*:*:*:lts:*:*:*
cpe:2.3:o:debian:debian_linux:8.0:*:*:*:*:*:*:*
cpe:2.3:o:debian:debian_linux:9.0:*:*:*:*:*:*:*
cpe:2.3:o:linux:linux_kernel:*:*:*:*:*:*:*:*

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