How severe is CVE-2018-6198?

CVE-2018-6198 has a CVSS 3.x base score of 4.7, rated medium severity. It is exploitable over local access with high attack complexity, requires low privileges and no user interaction. Impact on confidentiality is none, integrity high, and availability none.

Is CVE-2018-6198 being actively exploited?

It is not currently listed in CISA's KEV catalog. Its EPSS exploit-prediction score is 0% (32nd percentile), an estimate of the probability of exploitation in the next 30 days.

What products are affected by CVE-2018-6198?

CVE-2018-6198 primarily affects Tats W3m. In total, 5 product configurations (CPEs) are listed as vulnerable; see the affected-products list for the exact versions.

How do I fix CVE-2018-6198?

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

When was CVE-2018-6198 published?

CVE-2018-6198 was published on 2018-01-25 and last updated on 2026-06-17.

CVE-2018-6198

CVE-2018-6198 is a medium-severity vulnerability in Tats W3m with a CVSS 3.x base score of 4.7. 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-59.

Key facts

Severity: Medium (CVSS 3.x base score 4.7)
CVSS v2: 3.3
EPSS exploit prediction: 0% (32nd percentile)
Actively exploited: Not listed in CISA KEV
Weakness: CWE-59
Affected product: Tats W3m
Published: 2018-01-25
Last modified: 2026-06-17

Description

w3m through 0.5.3 does not properly handle temporary files when the ~/.w3m directory is unwritable, which allows a local attacker to craft a symlink attack to overwrite arbitrary files.

Frequently asked questions

What is CVE-2018-6198?: w3m through 0.5.3 does not properly handle temporary files when the ~/.w3m directory is unwritable, which allows a local attacker to craft a symlink attack to overwrite arbitrary files.
How severe is CVE-2018-6198?: CVE-2018-6198 has a CVSS 3.x base score of 4.7, rated medium severity. It is exploitable over local access with high attack complexity, requires low privileges and no user interaction. Impact on confidentiality is none, integrity high, and availability none.
Is CVE-2018-6198 being actively exploited?: It is not currently listed in CISA's KEV catalog. Its EPSS exploit-prediction score is 0% (32nd percentile), an estimate of the probability of exploitation in the next 30 days.
What products are affected by CVE-2018-6198?: CVE-2018-6198 primarily affects Tats W3m. In total, 5 product configurations (CPEs) are listed as vulnerable; see the affected-products list for the exact versions.
How do I fix CVE-2018-6198?: Review the linked vendor and NVD advisories for patched versions and mitigations, then upgrade or apply the recommended workaround.
When was CVE-2018-6198 published?: CVE-2018-6198 was published on 2018-01-25 and last updated on 2026-06-17.

References

Affected products (5)

cpe:2.3:a:tats:w3m:*:*:*:*:*:*:*:*
cpe:2.3:o:canonical:ubuntu_linux:12.04:*:*:*:esm:*:*:*
cpe:2.3:o:canonical:ubuntu_linux:14.04:*:*:*:lts:*:*:*
cpe:2.3:o:canonical:ubuntu_linux:16.04:*:*:*:lts:*:*:*
cpe:2.3:o:canonical:ubuntu_linux:17.10:*:*:*:*:*:*:*

More vulnerabilities in Tats W3m

CVE-2016-9429 — High (CVSS 8.8): An issue was discovered in the Tatsuya Kinoshita w3m fork before 0.5.3-31. Buffer overflow in the formUpdateBuffer…
CVE-2016-9428 — High (CVSS 8.8): An issue was discovered in the Tatsuya Kinoshita w3m fork before 0.5.3-31. Heap-based buffer overflow in the…
CVE-2016-9426 — High (CVSS 8.8): An issue was discovered in the Tatsuya Kinoshita w3m fork before 0.5.3-31. Integer overflow vulnerability in the…
CVE-2016-9425 — High (CVSS 8.8): An issue was discovered in the Tatsuya Kinoshita w3m fork before 0.5.3-31. Heap-based buffer overflow in the…
CVE-2016-9424 — High (CVSS 8.8): An issue was discovered in the Tatsuya Kinoshita w3m fork before 0.5.3-31. w3m doesn't properly validate the value of…
CVE-2016-9423 — High (CVSS 8.8): An issue was discovered in the Tatsuya Kinoshita w3m fork before 0.5.3-31. Heap-based buffer overflow in w3m allows…

All CVEs affecting Tats W3m →

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