How severe is CVE-2019-8961?

CVE-2019-8961 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 none, and availability high.

Is CVE-2019-8961 being actively exploited?

It is not currently listed in CISA's KEV catalog. Its EPSS exploit-prediction score is 2% (75th percentile), an estimate of the probability of exploitation in the next 30 days.

What products are affected by CVE-2019-8961?

CVE-2019-8961 affects Flexera Flexnet Publisher. See the affected-products list for the exact vulnerable versions.

How do I fix CVE-2019-8961?

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-2019-8961 published?

CVE-2019-8961 was published on 2020-04-21 and last updated on 2026-06-17.

CVE-2019-8961

CVE-2019-8961 is a high-severity vulnerability in Flexera Flexnet Publisher 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-674.

Key facts

Severity: High (CVSS 3.x base score 7.5)
CVSS v2: 5.0
EPSS exploit prediction: 2% (75th percentile)
Actively exploited: Not listed in CISA KEV
Weakness: CWE-674
Affected product: Flexera Flexnet Publisher
Published: 2020-04-21
Last modified: 2026-06-17

Description

A Denial of Service vulnerability related to stack exhaustion has been identified in FlexNet Publisher lmadmin.exe 11.16.2. Because the message reading function calls itself recursively given a certain condition in the received message, an unauthenticated remote attacker can repeatedly send messages of that type to cause a stack exhaustion condition.

Frequently asked questions

What is CVE-2019-8961?: A Denial of Service vulnerability related to stack exhaustion has been identified in FlexNet Publisher lmadmin.exe 11.16.2. Because the message reading function calls itself recursively given a certain condition in the received message, an unauthenticated remote attacker can repeatedly send messages of that type to cause a stack exhaustion condition.
How severe is CVE-2019-8961?: CVE-2019-8961 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 none, and availability high.
Is CVE-2019-8961 being actively exploited?: It is not currently listed in CISA's KEV catalog. Its EPSS exploit-prediction score is 2% (75th percentile), an estimate of the probability of exploitation in the next 30 days.
What products are affected by CVE-2019-8961?: CVE-2019-8961 affects Flexera Flexnet Publisher. See the affected-products list for the exact vulnerable versions.
How do I fix CVE-2019-8961?: 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-2019-8961 published?: CVE-2019-8961 was published on 2020-04-21 and last updated on 2026-06-17.

References

https://community.flexera.com/t5/FlexNet-Publisher-Knowledge-Base/CVE-2019-8961-remediated-in-FlexNet-Publisher/ta-p/124601/jump-to/first-unread-message

Affected products (1)

cpe:2.3:a:flexera:flexnet_publisher:11.16.2:*:*:*:*:*:*:*

More vulnerabilities in Flexera Flexnet Publisher

CVE-2018-20033 — Critical (CVSS 9.8): A Remote Code Execution vulnerability in lmgrd and vendor daemon components of FlexNet Publisher version 11.16.1.0 and…
CVE-2019-8963 — High (CVSS 7.5): A Denial of Service (DoS) vulnerability was discovered in FlexNet Publisher's lmadmin 11.16.5, when doing a crafted…
CVE-2020-12080 — High (CVSS 7.5): A Denial of Service vulnerability has been identified in FlexNet Publisher's lmadmin.exe version 11.16.6. A certain…
CVE-2020-12081 — High (CVSS 7.5): An information disclosure vulnerability has been identified in FlexNet Publisher lmadmin.exe 11.14.0.2. The web portal…
CVE-2019-8960 — High (CVSS 7.5): A Denial of Service vulnerability related to command handling has been identified in FlexNet Publisher lmadmin.exe…
CVE-2018-20034 — High (CVSS 7.5): A Denial of Service vulnerability related to adding an item to a list in lmgrd and vendor daemon components of FlexNet…

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