CVE-2019-15961

Name: CVE-2019-15961
Creator: NVD / NIST
Published: 2020-01-15T19:15:13.317+00:00
License: https://creativecommons.org/publicdomain/zero/1.0/

MEDIUMCVSS 6.5/10EPSS 3.14%

Last modified Jun 17, 2026

CVE-2019-15961 is a medium-severity vulnerability rated 6.5/10 on the CVSS scale. A vulnerability in the email parsing module Clam AntiVirus (ClamAV) Software versions 0.102.0, 0.101.4 and prior could allow an unauthenticated, remote attacker to cause a denial of service condition on an affected device. The vulnerability is due to inefficient MIME parsing routines that result in extremely long scan times of specially formatted email files. EPSS estimates a 3.14% chance of exploitation in the next 30 days.

Description

A vulnerability in the email parsing module Clam AntiVirus (ClamAV) Software versions 0.102.0, 0.101.4 and prior could allow an unauthenticated, remote attacker to cause a denial of service condition on an affected device. The vulnerability is due to inefficient MIME parsing routines that result in extremely long scan times of specially formatted email files. An attacker could exploit this vulnerability by sending a crafted email file to an affected device. An exploit could allow the attacker to cause the ClamAV scanning process to scan the crafted email file indefinitely, resulting in a denial of service condition.

Metrics

CVSS 3.1

6.5/10

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

EPSS Probability

3.14%

86.2th percentile

Probability of exploitation in the next 30 days. Learn more

Weakness Enumeration

Affected Software

Vendor	Product	Versions
Clamav	Clamav	<= 0.101.4
Clamav	Clamav	0.102.0
Cisco	Email Security Appliance Firmware	11.1.1-042
Cisco	Email Security Appliance Firmware	11.1.2-023
Canonical	Ubuntu Linux	12.04
Canonical	Ubuntu Linux	14.04
Debian	Debian Linux	8.0

References

https://bugzilla.clamav.net/show_bug.cgi?id=12380Exploit, Issue Tracking, Vendor Advisory
https://lists.debian.org/debian-lts-announce/2020/02/msg00016.htmlMailing List, Third Party Advisory
https://quickview.cloudapps.cisco.com/quickview/bug/CSCvr56010Third Party Advisory
https://security.gentoo.org/glsa/202003-46Third Party Advisory
https://usn.ubuntu.com/4230-2/Third Party Advisory
https://bugzilla.clamav.net/show_bug.cgi?id=12380Exploit, Issue Tracking, Vendor Advisory
https://lists.debian.org/debian-lts-announce/2020/02/msg00016.htmlMailing List, Third Party Advisory
https://quickview.cloudapps.cisco.com/quickview/bug/CSCvr56010Third Party Advisory
https://security.gentoo.org/glsa/202003-46Third Party Advisory
https://usn.ubuntu.com/4230-2/Third Party Advisory

Timeline

Published: Jan 15, 2020
Last Modified: Jun 17, 2026
Status: Modified

Frequently Asked Questions

What is CVE-2019-15961?

How severe is CVE-2019-15961?

CVE-2019-15961 has a CVSS score of 6.5/10 (MEDIUM severity). The EPSS model estimates a 3.14% probability of exploitation in the next 30 days.

How do I fix CVE-2019-15961?

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-2019-15961?

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

Scan your code now

Source: NVD / NIST