How severe is CVE-2018-6972?

CVE-2018-6972 has a CVSS 3.x base score of 6.5, 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 high.

Is CVE-2018-6972 being actively exploited?

It is not currently listed in CISA's KEV catalog. Its EPSS exploit-prediction score is 3% (86th percentile), an estimate of the probability of exploitation in the next 30 days.

What products are affected by CVE-2018-6972?

CVE-2018-6972 primarily affects Vmware Workstation. In total, 124 product configurations (CPEs) are listed as vulnerable; see the affected-products list for the exact versions.

How do I fix CVE-2018-6972?

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

When was CVE-2018-6972 published?

CVE-2018-6972 was published on 2018-07-25 and last updated on 2026-06-17.

CVE-2018-6972

CVE-2018-6972 is a medium-severity vulnerability in Vmware Workstation 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-476.

Key facts

Severity: Medium (CVSS 3.x base score 6.5)
CVSS v2: 4.0
EPSS exploit prediction: 3% (86th percentile)
Actively exploited: Not listed in CISA KEV
Weakness: CWE-476
Affected product: Vmware Workstation
Published: 2018-07-25
Last modified: 2026-06-17

Description

VMware ESXi (6.7 before ESXi670-201806401-BG, 6.5 before ESXi650-201806401-BG, 6.0 before ESXi600-201806401-BG and 5.5 before ESXi550-201806401-BG), Workstation (14.x before 14.1.2), and Fusion (10.x before 10.1.2) contain a denial-of-service vulnerability due to NULL pointer dereference issue in RPC handler. Successful exploitation of this issue may allow attackers with normal user privileges to crash their VMs.

Frequently asked questions

What is CVE-2018-6972?: VMware ESXi (6.7 before ESXi670-201806401-BG, 6.5 before ESXi650-201806401-BG, 6.0 before ESXi600-201806401-BG and 5.5 before ESXi550-201806401-BG), Workstation (14.x before 14.1.2), and Fusion (10.x before 10.1.2) contain a denial-of-service vulnerability due to NULL pointer dereference issue in RPC handler. Successful exploitation of this issue may allow attackers with normal user privileges to crash their VMs.
How severe is CVE-2018-6972?: CVE-2018-6972 has a CVSS 3.x base score of 6.5, 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 high.
Is CVE-2018-6972 being actively exploited?: It is not currently listed in CISA's KEV catalog. Its EPSS exploit-prediction score is 3% (86th percentile), an estimate of the probability of exploitation in the next 30 days.
What products are affected by CVE-2018-6972?: CVE-2018-6972 primarily affects Vmware Workstation. In total, 124 product configurations (CPEs) are listed as vulnerable; see the affected-products list for the exact versions.
How do I fix CVE-2018-6972?: Review the linked vendor and NVD advisories for patched versions and mitigations, then upgrade or apply the recommended workaround.
When was CVE-2018-6972 published?: CVE-2018-6972 was published on 2018-07-25 and last updated on 2026-06-17.

References

Affected products (124)

cpe:2.3:a:vmware:workstation:*:*:*:*:*:*:*:*
cpe:2.3:a:vmware:fusion:*:*:*:*:*:*:*:*
cpe:2.3:o:vmware:esxi:5.5:-:*:*:*:*:*:*
cpe:2.3:o:vmware:esxi:5.5:1:*:*:*:*:*:*
cpe:2.3:o:vmware:esxi:5.5:2:*:*:*:*:*:*
cpe:2.3:o:vmware:esxi:5.5:3a:*:*:*:*:*:*
cpe:2.3:o:vmware:esxi:5.5:3b:*:*:*:*:*:*
cpe:2.3:o:vmware:esxi:5.5:550-20170901001s:*:*:*:*:*:*
cpe:2.3:o:vmware:esxi:5.5:550-20170904001:*:*:*:*:*:*
cpe:2.3:o:vmware:esxi:6.0:-:*:*:*:*:*:*
cpe:2.3:o:vmware:esxi:6.0:1:*:*:*:*:*:*
cpe:2.3:o:vmware:esxi:6.0:1a:*:*:*:*:*:*
cpe:2.3:o:vmware:esxi:6.0:1b:*:*:*:*:*:*
cpe:2.3:o:vmware:esxi:6.0:2:*:*:*:*:*:*
cpe:2.3:o:vmware:esxi:6.0:3:*:*:*:*:*:*
cpe:2.3:o:vmware:esxi:6.0:3a:*:*:*:*:*:*
cpe:2.3:o:vmware:esxi:6.0:600-201504401:*:*:*:*:*:*
cpe:2.3:o:vmware:esxi:6.0:600-201505401:*:*:*:*:*:*
cpe:2.3:o:vmware:esxi:6.0:600-201507101:*:*:*:*:*:*
cpe:2.3:o:vmware:esxi:6.0:600-201507102:*:*:*:*:*:*
cpe:2.3:o:vmware:esxi:6.0:600-201507401:*:*:*:*:*:*
cpe:2.3:o:vmware:esxi:6.0:600-201507402:*:*:*:*:*:*
cpe:2.3:o:vmware:esxi:6.0:600-201507403:*:*:*:*:*:*
cpe:2.3:o:vmware:esxi:6.0:600-201507404:*:*:*:*:*:*
cpe:2.3:o:vmware:esxi:6.0:600-201507405:*:*:*:*:*:*
cpe:2.3:o:vmware:esxi:6.0:600-201507406:*:*:*:*:*:*
cpe:2.3:o:vmware:esxi:6.0:600-201507407:*:*:*:*:*:*
cpe:2.3:o:vmware:esxi:6.0:600-201509101:*:*:*:*:*:*
cpe:2.3:o:vmware:esxi:6.0:600-201509102:*:*:*:*:*:*
cpe:2.3:o:vmware:esxi:6.0:600-201509201:*:*:*:*:*:*
cpe:2.3:o:vmware:esxi:6.0:600-201509202:*:*:*:*:*:*
cpe:2.3:o:vmware:esxi:6.0:600-201509203:*:*:*:*:*:*
cpe:2.3:o:vmware:esxi:6.0:600-201509204:*:*:*:*:*:*
cpe:2.3:o:vmware:esxi:6.0:600-201509205:*:*:*:*:*:*
cpe:2.3:o:vmware:esxi:6.0:600-201509206:*:*:*:*:*:*
cpe:2.3:o:vmware:esxi:6.0:600-201509207:*:*:*:*:*:*
cpe:2.3:o:vmware:esxi:6.0:600-201509208:*:*:*:*:*:*
cpe:2.3:o:vmware:esxi:6.0:600-201509209:*:*:*:*:*:*
cpe:2.3:o:vmware:esxi:6.0:600-201509210:*:*:*:*:*:*
cpe:2.3:o:vmware:esxi:6.0:600-201510401:*:*:*:*:*:*

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