How severe is CVE-2018-10535?

CVE-2018-10535 has a CVSS 3.x base score of 5.5, rated medium severity. It is exploitable over local access with low attack complexity, requires no privileges and user interaction. Impact on confidentiality is none, integrity none, and availability high.

Is CVE-2018-10535 being actively exploited?

It is not currently listed in CISA's KEV catalog. Its EPSS exploit-prediction score is 2% (81st percentile), an estimate of the probability of exploitation in the next 30 days.

What products are affected by CVE-2018-10535?

CVE-2018-10535 primarily affects Gnu Binutils. In total, 4 product configurations (CPEs) are listed as vulnerable; see the affected-products list for the exact versions.

How do I fix CVE-2018-10535?

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

When was CVE-2018-10535 published?

CVE-2018-10535 was published on 2018-04-29 and last updated on 2026-06-17.

CVE-2018-10535

CVE-2018-10535 is a medium-severity vulnerability in Gnu Binutils 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-476.

Key facts

Severity: Medium (CVSS 3.x base score 5.5)
CVSS v2: 4.3
EPSS exploit prediction: 2% (81st percentile)
Actively exploited: Not listed in CISA KEV
Weakness: CWE-476
Affected product: Gnu Binutils
Published: 2018-04-29
Last modified: 2026-06-17

Description

The ignore_section_sym function in elf.c in the Binary File Descriptor (BFD) library (aka libbfd), as distributed in GNU Binutils 2.30, does not validate the output_section pointer in the case of a symtab entry with a "SECTION" type that has a "0" value, which allows remote attackers to cause a denial of service (NULL pointer dereference and application crash) via a crafted file, as demonstrated by objcopy.

Frequently asked questions

What is CVE-2018-10535?: The ignore_section_sym function in elf.c in the Binary File Descriptor (BFD) library (aka libbfd), as distributed in GNU Binutils 2.30, does not validate the output_section pointer in the case of a symtab entry with a "SECTION" type that has a "0" value, which allows remote attackers to cause a denial of service (NULL pointer dereference and application crash) via a crafted file, as demonstrated by objcopy.
How severe is CVE-2018-10535?: CVE-2018-10535 has a CVSS 3.x base score of 5.5, rated medium severity. It is exploitable over local access with low attack complexity, requires no privileges and user interaction. Impact on confidentiality is none, integrity none, and availability high.
Is CVE-2018-10535 being actively exploited?: It is not currently listed in CISA's KEV catalog. Its EPSS exploit-prediction score is 2% (81st percentile), an estimate of the probability of exploitation in the next 30 days.
What products are affected by CVE-2018-10535?: CVE-2018-10535 primarily affects Gnu Binutils. In total, 4 product configurations (CPEs) are listed as vulnerable; see the affected-products list for the exact versions.
How do I fix CVE-2018-10535?: Review the linked vendor and NVD advisories for patched versions and mitigations, then upgrade or apply the recommended workaround.
When was CVE-2018-10535 published?: CVE-2018-10535 was published on 2018-04-29 and last updated on 2026-06-17.

References

Affected products (4)

cpe:2.3:a:gnu:binutils:2.30:*:*:*:*:*:*:*
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_workstation:7.0:*:*:*:*:*:*:*

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