How severe is CVE-2018-5709?

CVE-2018-5709 has a CVSS 3.x base score of 7.5, rated high severity. It is exploitable over network with low attack complexity, requires no privileges and no user interaction. Impact on confidentiality is none, integrity high, and availability none.

Is CVE-2018-5709 being actively exploited?

It is not currently listed in CISA's KEV catalog. Its EPSS exploit-prediction score is 2% (79th percentile), an estimate of the probability of exploitation in the next 30 days.

What products are affected by CVE-2018-5709?

CVE-2018-5709 affects Mit Kerberos. See the affected-products list for the exact vulnerable versions.

How do I fix CVE-2018-5709?

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

When was CVE-2018-5709 published?

CVE-2018-5709 was published on 2018-01-16 and last updated on 2026-06-17.

CVE-2018-5709

CVE-2018-5709 is a high-severity vulnerability in Mit Kerberos with a CVSS 3.x base score of 7.5. 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-190.

Key facts

Severity: High (CVSS 3.x base score 7.5)
CVSS v2: 5.0
EPSS exploit prediction: 2% (79th percentile)
Actively exploited: Not listed in CISA KEV
Weakness: CWE-190
Affected product: Mit Kerberos
Published: 2018-01-16
Last modified: 2026-06-17

Description

An issue was discovered in MIT Kerberos 5 (aka krb5) through 1.16. There is a variable "dbentry->n_key_data" in kadmin/dbutil/dump.c that can store 16-bit data but unknowingly the developer has assigned a "u4" variable to it, which is for 32-bit data. An attacker can use this vulnerability to affect other artifacts of the database as we know that a Kerberos database dump file contains trusted data.

Frequently asked questions

What is CVE-2018-5709?: An issue was discovered in MIT Kerberos 5 (aka krb5) through 1.16. There is a variable "dbentry->n_key_data" in kadmin/dbutil/dump.c that can store 16-bit data but unknowingly the developer has assigned a "u4" variable to it, which is for 32-bit data. An attacker can use this vulnerability to affect other artifacts of the database as we know that a Kerberos database dump file contains trusted data.
How severe is CVE-2018-5709?: CVE-2018-5709 has a CVSS 3.x base score of 7.5, rated high severity. It is exploitable over network with low attack complexity, requires no privileges and no user interaction. Impact on confidentiality is none, integrity high, and availability none.
Is CVE-2018-5709 being actively exploited?: It is not currently listed in CISA's KEV catalog. Its EPSS exploit-prediction score is 2% (79th percentile), an estimate of the probability of exploitation in the next 30 days.
What products are affected by CVE-2018-5709?: CVE-2018-5709 affects Mit Kerberos. See the affected-products list for the exact vulnerable versions.
How do I fix CVE-2018-5709?: Review the linked vendor and NVD advisories for patched versions and mitigations, then upgrade or apply the recommended workaround. Given its high severity, prioritise patching exposed systems.
When was CVE-2018-5709 published?: CVE-2018-5709 was published on 2018-01-16 and last updated on 2026-06-17.

References

Affected products (1)

cpe:2.3:a:mit:kerberos:*:*:*:*:*:*:*:*

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