How severe is CVE-2018-17204?

CVE-2018-17204 has a CVSS 3.x base score of 4.3, rated medium severity. It is exploitable over network with low attack complexity, requires low privileges and no user interaction. Impact on confidentiality is none, integrity none, and availability low.

Is CVE-2018-17204 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-2018-17204?

CVE-2018-17204 primarily affects Openvswitch. In total, 6 product configurations (CPEs) are listed as vulnerable; see the affected-products list for the exact versions.

How do I fix CVE-2018-17204?

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

When was CVE-2018-17204 published?

CVE-2018-17204 was published on 2018-09-19 and last updated on 2026-06-17.

CVE-2018-17204

CVE-2018-17204 is a medium-severity vulnerability in Openvswitch with a CVSS 3.x base score of 4.3. 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-617.

Key facts

Severity: Medium (CVSS 3.x base score 4.3)
CVSS v2: 4.0
EPSS exploit prediction: 2% (77th percentile)
Actively exploited: Not listed in CISA KEV
Weakness: CWE-617
Affected product: Openvswitch
Published: 2018-09-19
Last modified: 2026-06-17

Description

An issue was discovered in Open vSwitch (OvS) 2.7.x through 2.7.6, affecting parse_group_prop_ntr_selection_method in lib/ofp-util.c. When decoding a group mod, it validates the group type and command after the whole group mod has been decoded. The OF1.5 decoder, however, tries to use the type and command earlier, when it might still be invalid. This causes an assertion failure (via OVS_NOT_REACHED). ovs-vswitchd does not enable support for OpenFlow 1.5 by default.

Frequently asked questions

What is CVE-2018-17204?: An issue was discovered in Open vSwitch (OvS) 2.7.x through 2.7.6, affecting parse_group_prop_ntr_selection_method in lib/ofp-util.c. When decoding a group mod, it validates the group type and command after the whole group mod has been decoded. The OF1.5 decoder, however, tries to use the type and command earlier, when it might still be invalid. This causes an assertion failure (via OVS_NOT_REACHED). ovs-vswitchd does not enable support for OpenFlow 1.5 by default.
How severe is CVE-2018-17204?: CVE-2018-17204 has a CVSS 3.x base score of 4.3, rated medium severity. It is exploitable over network with low attack complexity, requires low privileges and no user interaction. Impact on confidentiality is none, integrity none, and availability low.
Is CVE-2018-17204 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-2018-17204?: CVE-2018-17204 primarily affects Openvswitch. In total, 6 product configurations (CPEs) are listed as vulnerable; see the affected-products list for the exact versions.
How do I fix CVE-2018-17204?: Review the linked vendor and NVD advisories for patched versions and mitigations, then upgrade or apply the recommended workaround.
When was CVE-2018-17204 published?: CVE-2018-17204 was published on 2018-09-19 and last updated on 2026-06-17.

References

Affected products (6)

cpe:2.3:a:openvswitch:openvswitch:*:*:*:*:*:*:*:*
cpe:2.3:a:redhat:openstack:10:*:*:*:*:*:*:*
cpe:2.3:a:redhat:openstack:13:*:*:*:*:*:*:*
cpe:2.3:o:canonical:ubuntu_linux:16.04:*:*:*:lts:*:*:*
cpe:2.3:o:canonical:ubuntu_linux:18.04:*:*:*:lts:*:*:*
cpe:2.3:o:debian:debian_linux:9.0:*:*:*:*:*:*:*

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