How severe is CVE-2018-15751?

CVE-2018-15751 has a CVSS 3.x base score of 9.8, rated critical severity. It is exploitable over network with low attack complexity, requires no privileges and no user interaction. Impact on confidentiality is high, integrity high, and availability high.

Is CVE-2018-15751 being actively exploited?

It is not currently listed in CISA's KEV catalog. Its EPSS exploit-prediction score is 5% (91st percentile), an estimate of the probability of exploitation in the next 30 days.

What products are affected by CVE-2018-15751?

CVE-2018-15751 affects Saltstack Salt. See the affected-products list for the exact vulnerable versions.

How do I fix CVE-2018-15751?

Review the linked vendor and NVD advisories for patched versions and mitigations, then upgrade or apply the recommended workaround. Given its critical severity, prioritise patching exposed systems.

When was CVE-2018-15751 published?

CVE-2018-15751 was published on 2018-10-24 and last updated on 2026-06-17.

CVE-2018-15751

CVE-2018-15751 is a critical-severity vulnerability in Saltstack Salt with a CVSS 3.x base score of 9.8. 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: Critical (CVSS 3.x base score 9.8)
CVSS v2: 7.5
EPSS exploit prediction: 5% (91st percentile)
Actively exploited: Not listed in CISA KEV
Weakness: CWE-287
Affected product: Saltstack Salt
Published: 2018-10-24
Last modified: 2026-06-17

Description

SaltStack Salt before 2017.7.8 and 2018.3.x before 2018.3.3 allow remote attackers to bypass authentication and execute arbitrary commands via salt-api(netapi).

Frequently asked questions

What is CVE-2018-15751?: SaltStack Salt before 2017.7.8 and 2018.3.x before 2018.3.3 allow remote attackers to bypass authentication and execute arbitrary commands via salt-api(netapi).
How severe is CVE-2018-15751?: CVE-2018-15751 has a CVSS 3.x base score of 9.8, rated critical severity. It is exploitable over network with low attack complexity, requires no privileges and no user interaction. Impact on confidentiality is high, integrity high, and availability high.
Is CVE-2018-15751 being actively exploited?: It is not currently listed in CISA's KEV catalog. Its EPSS exploit-prediction score is 5% (91st percentile), an estimate of the probability of exploitation in the next 30 days.
What products are affected by CVE-2018-15751?: CVE-2018-15751 affects Saltstack Salt. See the affected-products list for the exact vulnerable versions.
How do I fix CVE-2018-15751?: Review the linked vendor and NVD advisories for patched versions and mitigations, then upgrade or apply the recommended workaround. Given its critical severity, prioritise patching exposed systems.
When was CVE-2018-15751 published?: CVE-2018-15751 was published on 2018-10-24 and last updated on 2026-06-17.

References

Affected products (1)

cpe:2.3:a:saltstack:salt:*:*:*:*:*:*:*:*

More vulnerabilities in Saltstack Salt

CVE-2013-6617 — Critical (CVSS 10.0): The salt master in Salt (aka SaltStack) 0.11.0 through 0.17.0 does not properly drop group privileges, which makes it…
CVE-2013-4437 — Critical (CVSS 10.0): Unspecified vulnerability in salt-ssh in Salt (aka SaltStack) 0.17.0 has unspecified impact and vectors related to…
CVE-2021-33226 — Critical (CVSS 9.8): Buffer Overflow vulnerability in Saltstack v.3003 and before allows attacker to execute arbitrary code via the func…
CVE-2021-25315 — Critical (CVSS 9.8): CWE - CWE-287: Improper Authentication vulnerability in SUSE Linux Enterprise Server 15 SP 3; openSUSE Tumbleweed…
CVE-2021-3197 — Critical (CVSS 9.8): An issue was discovered in SaltStack Salt before 3002.5. The salt-api's ssh client is vulnerable to a shell injection…
CVE-2021-3148 — Critical (CVSS 9.8): An issue was discovered in SaltStack Salt before 3002.5. Sending crafted web requests to the Salt API can result in…

All CVEs affecting Saltstack Salt →

Other CWE-287 (Improper Authentication) vulnerabilities

CVE-2026-45480 — Critical (CVSS 10.0): Improper authentication in Azure Active Directory allows an unauthorized attacker to elevate privileges over a network.
CVE-2026-46389 — Critical (CVSS 10.0): UDS Identity Config builds the Keycloak configuration image (realm, plugins, theme, truststore, JARs) consumed by UDS…
CVE-2026-10611 — Critical (CVSS 10.0): An authentication bypass vulnerability exists in MISP when LDAP mixed authentication is enabled with OTP enforcement.…
CVE-2026-47280 — Critical (CVSS 10.0): Improper authentication in Azure Resource Manager (ARM) allows an unauthorized attacker to elevate privileges over a…
CVE-2026-42822 — Critical (CVSS 10.0): Improper authentication in Azure Local Disconnected Operations allows an unauthorized attacker to elevate privileges…
CVE-2026-20182 — Critical (CVSS 10.0): May 2026: This security advisory provides the details and fix information for a vulnerability that was discovered and…

Browse all CWE-287 (Improper Authentication) vulnerabilities →