CVE-2019-20175

Name: CVE-2019-20175
Creator: NVD / NIST
Published: 2019-12-31T04:15:10.503+00:00
License: https://creativecommons.org/publicdomain/zero/1.0/

HIGHCVSS 7.5/10EPSS 3.36%

Last modified Jun 17, 2026

CVE-2019-20175 is a high-severity vulnerability rated 7.5/10 on the CVSS scale. An issue was discovered in ide_dma_cb() in hw/ide/core.c in QEMU 2.4.0 through 4.2.0. The guest system can crash the QEMU process in the host system via a special SCSI_IOCTL_SEND_COMMAND. EPSS estimates a 3.36% chance of exploitation in the next 30 days.

Description

An issue was discovered in ide_dma_cb() in hw/ide/core.c in QEMU 2.4.0 through 4.2.0. The guest system can crash the QEMU process in the host system via a special SCSI_IOCTL_SEND_COMMAND. It hits an assertion that implies that the size of successful DMA transfers there must be a multiple of 512 (the size of a sector). NOTE: a member of the QEMU security team disputes the significance of this issue because a "privileged guest user has many ways to cause similar DoS effect, without triggering this assert.

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

3.36%

87.2th percentile

Probability of exploitation in the next 30 days. Learn more

Weakness Enumeration

CWE-754

Affected Software

Vendor	Product	Versions
Qemu	Qemu	>= 2.4.0, <= 4.2.0

References

https://lists.nongnu.org/archive/html/qemu-devel/2019-07/msg01651.htmlExploit, Mailing List, Third Party Advisory
https://lists.nongnu.org/archive/html/qemu-devel/2019-07/msg03869.htmlMailing List, Third Party Advisory
https://lists.nongnu.org/archive/html/qemu-devel/2019-11/msg00597.htmlThird Party Advisory
https://lists.nongnu.org/archive/html/qemu-devel/2019-11/msg02165.htmlMailing List, Patch, Third Party Advisory
https://www.mail-archive.com/qemu-devel%40nongnu.org/msg667396.html
https://lists.nongnu.org/archive/html/qemu-devel/2019-07/msg01651.htmlExploit, Mailing List, Third Party Advisory
https://lists.nongnu.org/archive/html/qemu-devel/2019-07/msg03869.htmlMailing List, Third Party Advisory
https://lists.nongnu.org/archive/html/qemu-devel/2019-11/msg00597.htmlThird Party Advisory
https://lists.nongnu.org/archive/html/qemu-devel/2019-11/msg02165.htmlMailing List, Patch, Third Party Advisory
https://www.mail-archive.com/qemu-devel%40nongnu.org/msg667396.html

Timeline

Published: Dec 31, 2019
Last Modified: Jun 17, 2026
Status: Modified

Frequently Asked Questions

What is CVE-2019-20175?

How severe is CVE-2019-20175?

CVE-2019-20175 has a CVSS score of 7.5/10 (HIGH severity). The EPSS model estimates a 3.36% probability of exploitation in the next 30 days.

How do I fix CVE-2019-20175?

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-2019-20175?

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

Scan your code now

Source: NVD / NIST