How severe is CVE-2018-3979?

CVE-2018-3979 has a CVSS 3.x base score of 6.5, rated medium severity. It is exploitable over network with low attack complexity, requires no privileges and user interaction. Impact on confidentiality is none, integrity none, and availability high.

Is CVE-2018-3979 being actively exploited?

It is not currently listed in CISA's KEV catalog. Its EPSS exploit-prediction score is 1% (70th percentile), an estimate of the probability of exploitation in the next 30 days.

What products are affected by CVE-2018-3979?

CVE-2018-3979 primarily affects Canonical Ubuntu Linux. In total, 17 product configurations (CPEs) are listed as vulnerable; see the affected-products list for the exact versions.

How do I fix CVE-2018-3979?

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

When was CVE-2018-3979 published?

CVE-2018-3979 was published on 2019-04-01 and last updated on 2026-06-17.

CVE-2018-3979

CVE-2018-3979 is a medium-severity vulnerability in Canonical Ubuntu Linux with a CVSS 3.x base score of 6.5. 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-400.

Key facts

Severity: Medium (CVSS 3.x base score 6.5)
CVSS v2: 4.3
EPSS exploit prediction: 1% (70th percentile)
Actively exploited: Not listed in CISA KEV
Weakness: CWE-400
Affected product: Canonical Ubuntu Linux
Published: 2019-04-01
Last modified: 2026-06-17

Description

A remote denial-of-service vulnerability exists in the way the Nouveau Display Driver (the default Ubuntu Nvidia display driver) handles GPU shader execution. A specially crafted pixel shader can cause remote denial-of-service issues. An attacker can provide a specially crafted website to trigger this vulnerability. This vulnerability can be triggered remotely after the user visits a malformed website. No further user interaction is required. Vulnerable versions include Ubuntu 18.04 LTS (linux 4.15.0-29-generic x86_64), Nouveau Display Driver NV117 (vermagic: 4.15.0-29-generic SMP mod_unload).

Frequently asked questions

What is CVE-2018-3979?: A remote denial-of-service vulnerability exists in the way the Nouveau Display Driver (the default Ubuntu Nvidia display driver) handles GPU shader execution. A specially crafted pixel shader can cause remote denial-of-service issues. An attacker can provide a specially crafted website to trigger this vulnerability. This vulnerability can be triggered remotely after the user visits a malformed website. No further user interaction is required. Vulnerable versions include Ubuntu 18.04 LTS (linux 4.15.0-29-generic x86_64), Nouveau Display Driver NV117 (vermagic: 4.15.0-29-generic SMP mod_unload).
How severe is CVE-2018-3979?: CVE-2018-3979 has a CVSS 3.x base score of 6.5, rated medium severity. It is exploitable over network with low attack complexity, requires no privileges and user interaction. Impact on confidentiality is none, integrity none, and availability high.
Is CVE-2018-3979 being actively exploited?: It is not currently listed in CISA's KEV catalog. Its EPSS exploit-prediction score is 1% (70th percentile), an estimate of the probability of exploitation in the next 30 days.
What products are affected by CVE-2018-3979?: CVE-2018-3979 primarily affects Canonical Ubuntu Linux. In total, 17 product configurations (CPEs) are listed as vulnerable; see the affected-products list for the exact versions.
How do I fix CVE-2018-3979?: Review the linked vendor and NVD advisories for patched versions and mitigations, then upgrade or apply the recommended workaround.
When was CVE-2018-3979 published?: CVE-2018-3979 was published on 2019-04-01 and last updated on 2026-06-17.

References

https://talosintelligence.com/vulnerability_reports/TALOS-2018-0647

Affected products (17)

cpe:2.3:o:canonical:ubuntu_linux:18.04:*:*:*:lts:*:*:*
cpe:2.3:o:nvidia:geforce_gtx_745_firmware:-:*:*:*:*:*:*:*
cpe:2.3:o:nvidia:geforce_gtx_750_firmware:-:*:*:*:*:*:*:*
cpe:2.3:o:nvidia:geforce_gtx_750_ti_firmware:-:*:*:*:*:*:*:*
cpe:2.3:o:nvidia:geforce_gtx_840m_firmware:-:*:*:*:*:*:*:*
cpe:2.3:o:nvidia:geforce_gtx_845m_firmware:-:*:*:*:*:*:*:*
cpe:2.3:o:nvidia:geforce_gtx_850m_firmware:-:*:*:*:*:*:*:*
cpe:2.3:o:nvidia:geforce_gtx_860m_firmware:-:*:*:*:*:*:*:*
cpe:2.3:o:nvidia:geforce_gtx_950m_firmware:-:*:*:*:*:*:*:*
cpe:2.3:o:nvidia:geforce_gtx_960m_firmware:-:*:*:*:*:*:*:*
cpe:2.3:o:nvidia:quadro_k620_firmware:-:*:*:*:*:*:*:*
cpe:2.3:o:nvidia:quadro_k1200_firmware:-:*:*:*:*:*:*:*
cpe:2.3:o:nvidia:quadro_k2200_firmware:-:*:*:*:*:*:*:*
cpe:2.3:o:nvidia:quadro_m1000m_firmware:-:*:*:*:*:*:*:*
cpe:2.3:o:nvidia:quadro_m1200m_firmware:-:*:*:*:*:*:*:*
cpe:2.3:o:nvidia:grid_m30_firmware:-:*:*:*:*:*:*:*
cpe:2.3:o:nvidia:grid_m40_firmware:-:*:*:*:*:*:*:*

More vulnerabilities in Canonical Ubuntu Linux

CVE-2023-1523 — Critical (CVSS 10.0): Using the TIOCLINUX ioctl request, a malicious snap could inject contents into the input of the controlling terminal…
CVE-2020-13753 — Critical (CVSS 10.0): The bubblewrap sandbox of WebKitGTK and WPE WebKit, prior to 2.28.3, failed to properly block access to CLONE_NEWUSER…
CVE-2018-18505 — Critical (CVSS 10.0): An earlier fix for an Inter-process Communication (IPC) vulnerability, CVE-2011-3079, added authentication to…
CVE-2017-16845 — Critical (CVSS 10.0): hw/input/ps2.c in Qemu does not validate 'rptr' and 'count' values during guest migration, leading to out-of-bounds…
CVE-2016-0494 — Critical (CVSS 10.0): Unspecified vulnerability in the Java SE and Java SE Embedded components in Oracle Java SE 6u105, 7u91, and 8u66 and…
CVE-2016-0483 — Critical (CVSS 10.0): Unspecified vulnerability in Oracle Java SE 6u105, 7u91, and 8u66; Java SE Embedded 8u65; and JRockit R28.3.8 allows…

All CVEs affecting Canonical Ubuntu Linux →

Other CWE-400 (Uncontrolled Resource Consumption) vulnerabilities

CVE-2026-46775 — Critical (CVSS 9.9): Vulnerability in Oracle REST Data Services (component: Core). Supported versions that are affected are 24.2.0-26.1.0.…
CVE-2025-61303 — Critical (CVSS 9.8): Hatching Triage Sandbox Windows 10 build 2004 (2025-08-14) and Windows 10 LTSC 2021(2025-08-14) contains a…
CVE-2025-43193 — Critical (CVSS 9.8): The issue was addressed with improved memory handling. This issue is fixed in macOS Sequoia 15.6, macOS Sonoma 14.7.7,…
CVE-2025-24269 — Critical (CVSS 9.8): The issue was addressed with improved memory handling. This issue is fixed in macOS Sequoia 15.4. An app may be able to…
CVE-2025-24264 — Critical (CVSS 9.8): The issue was addressed with improved memory handling. This issue is fixed in Safari 18.4, iOS 18.4 and iPadOS 18.4,…
CVE-2025-24260 — Critical (CVSS 9.8): The issue was addressed with improved memory handling. This issue is fixed in macOS Sequoia 15.4, macOS Sonoma 14.7.5,…

Browse all CWE-400 (Uncontrolled Resource Consumption) vulnerabilities →