How severe is CVE-2019-14873?

CVE-2019-14873 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-2019-14873 being actively exploited?

It is not currently listed in CISA's KEV catalog. Its EPSS exploit-prediction score is 1% (67th percentile), an estimate of the probability of exploitation in the next 30 days.

What products are affected by CVE-2019-14873?

CVE-2019-14873 affects Newlib Project Newlib. See the affected-products list for the exact vulnerable versions.

How do I fix CVE-2019-14873?

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

When was CVE-2019-14873 published?

CVE-2019-14873 was published on 2020-03-19 and last updated on 2026-06-17.

CVE-2019-14873

CVE-2019-14873 is a medium-severity vulnerability in Newlib Project Newlib 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: 1% (67th percentile)
Actively exploited: Not listed in CISA KEV
Weakness: CWE-476
Affected product: Newlib Project Newlib
Published: 2020-03-19
Last modified: 2026-06-17

Description

In the __multadd function of the newlib libc library, prior to versions 3.3.0 (see newlib/libc/stdlib/mprec.c), Balloc is used to allocate a big integer, however no check is performed to verify if the allocation succeeded or not. This will trigger a null pointer dereference bug in case of a memory allocation failure.

Frequently asked questions

What is CVE-2019-14873?: In the __multadd function of the newlib libc library, prior to versions 3.3.0 (see newlib/libc/stdlib/mprec.c), Balloc is used to allocate a big integer, however no check is performed to verify if the allocation succeeded or not. This will trigger a null pointer dereference bug in case of a memory allocation failure.
How severe is CVE-2019-14873?: CVE-2019-14873 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-2019-14873 being actively exploited?: It is not currently listed in CISA's KEV catalog. Its EPSS exploit-prediction score is 1% (67th percentile), an estimate of the probability of exploitation in the next 30 days.
What products are affected by CVE-2019-14873?: CVE-2019-14873 affects Newlib Project Newlib. See the affected-products list for the exact vulnerable versions.
How do I fix CVE-2019-14873?: Review the linked vendor and NVD advisories for patched versions and mitigations, then upgrade or apply the recommended workaround.
When was CVE-2019-14873 published?: CVE-2019-14873 was published on 2020-03-19 and last updated on 2026-06-17.

References

https://census-labs.com/news/2020/01/31/multiple-null-pointer-dereference-vulnerabilities-in-newlib/

Affected products (1)

cpe:2.3:a:newlib_project:newlib:*:*:*:*:*:*:*:*

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