CVE-2018-16890

Name: CVE-2018-16890
Creator: NVD / NIST
Published: 2019-02-06T20:29:00.243+00:00
License: https://creativecommons.org/publicdomain/zero/1.0/

HIGHCVSS 7.5/10EPSS 5.35%

Last modified Jun 17, 2026

CVE-2018-16890 is a high-severity vulnerability rated 7.5/10 on the CVSS scale. libcurl versions from 7.36.0 to before 7.64.0 is vulnerable to a heap buffer out-of-bounds read. The function handling incoming NTLM type-2 messages (`lib/vauth/ntlm.c:ntlm_decode_type2_target`) does not validate incoming data correctly and is subject to an integer overflow vulnerability. EPSS estimates a 5.35% chance of exploitation in the next 30 days.

Description

libcurl versions from 7.36.0 to before 7.64.0 is vulnerable to a heap buffer out-of-bounds read. The function handling incoming NTLM type-2 messages (`lib/vauth/ntlm.c:ntlm_decode_type2_target`) does not validate incoming data correctly and is subject to an integer overflow vulnerability. Using that overflow, a malicious or broken NTLM server could trick libcurl to accept a bad length + offset combination that would lead to a buffer read out-of-bounds.

Metrics

CVSS 3.1

7.5/10

CVSS:3.1/AV:N/AC:L/PR:N/UI:N/S:U/C:N/I:N/A:H

EPSS Probability

5.35%

91.6th percentile

Probability of exploitation in the next 30 days. Learn more

Weakness Enumeration

Affected Software

Vendor	Product	Versions
Haxx	Libcurl	>= 7.36.0, < 7.64.0
Canonical	Ubuntu Linux	14.04
Canonical	Ubuntu Linux	16.04
Canonical	Ubuntu Linux	18.04
Canonical	Ubuntu Linux	18.10
Debian	Debian Linux	9.0
Netapp	Clustered Data Ontap	All versions
Siemens	Sinema Remote Connect Client	<= 2.0
Oracle	Communications Operations Monitor	3.4
Oracle	Communications Operations Monitor	4.0
Oracle	Http Server	12.2.1.3.0
Oracle	Secure Global Desktop	5.4
Redhat	Enterprise Linux	8.0
F5	Big-Ip Access Policy Manager	>= 13.1.0, <= 13.1.3
F5	Big-Ip Access Policy Manager	>= 14.0.0, <= 14.1.2
F5	Big-Ip Access Policy Manager	>= 15.0.0, <= 15.0.1

References

http://www.securityfocus.com/bid/106947Third Party Advisory, VDB Entry
https://access.redhat.com/errata/RHSA-2019:3701Third Party Advisory
https://bugzilla.redhat.com/show_bug.cgi?id=CVE-2018-16890Issue Tracking, Mitigation, Patch, Third Party Advisory
https://cert-portal.siemens.com/productcert/pdf/ssa-436177.pdfThird Party Advisory
https://curl.haxx.se/docs/CVE-2018-16890.htmlPatch, Vendor Advisory
https://lists.apache.org/thread.html/8338a0f605bdbb3a6098bb76f666a95fc2b2f53f37fa1ecc89f1146f%40%3Cdevnull.infra.apache.org%3E
https://security.netapp.com/advisory/ntap-20190315-0001/Patch, Third Party Advisory
https://support.f5.com/csp/article/K03314397?utm_source=f5support&amp%3Butm_medium=RSS
https://usn.ubuntu.com/3882-1/Third Party Advisory
https://www.debian.org/security/2019/dsa-4386Third Party Advisory
https://www.oracle.com/technetwork/security-advisory/cpuapr2019-5072813.htmlPatch, Third Party Advisory
https://www.oracle.com/technetwork/security-advisory/cpujul2019-5072835.htmlPatch, Third Party Advisory
http://www.securityfocus.com/bid/106947Third Party Advisory, VDB Entry
https://access.redhat.com/errata/RHSA-2019:3701Third Party Advisory
https://bugzilla.redhat.com/show_bug.cgi?id=CVE-2018-16890Issue Tracking, Mitigation, Patch, Third Party Advisory
https://cert-portal.siemens.com/productcert/pdf/ssa-436177.pdfThird Party Advisory
https://curl.haxx.se/docs/CVE-2018-16890.htmlPatch, Vendor Advisory
https://lists.apache.org/thread.html/8338a0f605bdbb3a6098bb76f666a95fc2b2f53f37fa1ecc89f1146f%40%3Cdevnull.infra.apache.org%3E
https://security.netapp.com/advisory/ntap-20190315-0001/Patch, Third Party Advisory
https://support.f5.com/csp/article/K03314397?utm_source=f5support&amp%3Butm_medium=RSS
https://usn.ubuntu.com/3882-1/Third Party Advisory
https://www.debian.org/security/2019/dsa-4386Third Party Advisory
https://www.oracle.com/technetwork/security-advisory/cpuapr2019-5072813.htmlPatch, Third Party Advisory
https://www.oracle.com/technetwork/security-advisory/cpujul2019-5072835.htmlPatch, Third Party Advisory

Timeline

Published: Feb 6, 2019
Last Modified: Jun 17, 2026
Status: Modified

Frequently Asked Questions

What is CVE-2018-16890?

How severe is CVE-2018-16890?

CVE-2018-16890 has a CVSS score of 7.5/10 (HIGH severity). The EPSS model estimates a 5.35% probability of exploitation in the next 30 days.

How do I fix CVE-2018-16890?

Check the vendor references and advisories linked above for patched versions and mitigation guidance. You can also run a Strix scan to test if your systems are affected.

Are you affected by CVE-2018-16890?

Run a free Strix scan to check your systems for this vulnerability.

Scan your code now

Source: NVD / NIST