# CVE-2017-5242: Rapid7 Nexpose Virtual Appliance Duplicate SSH Host Key

> Identical SSH host keys in Rapid7 Nexpose and InsightVM virtual appliances allow attackers to bypass SSH host verification and potentially intercept traffic.

- **Severity:** High 7.7 (`CVSS:3.1/AV:N/AC:H/PR:L/UI:R/S:C/C:H/I:H/A:N`)
- **Exploited in the wild:** Not known
- **Login needed:** Any signed-in user
- **Attackable:** Over the internet
- **Victim action needed:** A user has to click or open something
- **Fix available:** No
- **Published:** 12 Jan 2023
- **Updated:** 8 Apr 2025
- **Also known as:** GHSA-w5c5-f46c-8j6x

## What is CVE-2017-5242?

CVE-2017-5242 is a high-severity vulnerability in Rapid7 InsightVM Virtual Appliance, published on 12 Jan 2023. Any signed-in user can exploit it over the network, and only if a user opens a file or follows a link.

### Official description

Nexpose and InsightVM virtual appliances downloaded between April 5th, 2017 and May 3rd, 2017 contain identical SSH host keys. Normally, a unique SSH host key should be generated the first time a virtual appliance boots.

Weakness: CWE-330 (Use of Insufficiently Random Values), CWE-321 (Use of Hard-coded Cryptographic Key)

## Which versions are affected by CVE-2017-5242?

It affects 1 product.


Products: Rapid7 Insightvm.

## How do I fix CVE-2017-5242?

No fix has been published for CVE-2017-5242 yet. Limit exposure of the affected software until one is available.

## Is CVE-2017-5242 being exploited?

There is no known exploitation of CVE-2017-5242 in the wild and no public exploit code.

## Other vulnerabilities in Rapid7 InsightVM Virtual Appliance

- [CVE-2021-3844](https://insights.sbomify.com/CVE-2021-3844/): Rapid7 InsightVM Insufficient Session Expiration (medium 5.7)
- [CVE-2022-4261](https://insights.sbomify.com/CVE-2022-4261/): Rapid7 Nexpose Update Validation Issue (medium 4.4)
- [CVE-2024-6504](https://insights.sbomify.com/CVE-2024-6504/): Rapid7 InsightVM Protection Mechanism Failure (medium 4.3)
- [CVE-2023-0681](https://insights.sbomify.com/CVE-2023-0681/): Rapid7 Nexpose Uncontrolled URL Redirect (medium 4.3)
- [CVE-2024-2745](https://insights.sbomify.com/CVE-2024-2745/): Rapid7 InsightVM Sensitive Information Exposure via URL (low 3.3)

## Fix prompt for AI coding agents

```text
Check this codebase for CVE-2017-5242 and fix it if it is affected.

What it is: CVE-2017-5242 is a high-severity vulnerability in Rapid7 InsightVM Virtual Appliance, published on 12 Jan 2023. Any signed-in user can exploit it over the network, and only if a user opens a file or follows a link.
Exploitation: There is no known exploitation of CVE-2017-5242 in the wild and no public exploit code.

Affected product: Rapid7 InsightVM Virtual Appliance. No package-level version data is available, so check the vendor advisory linked from the reference page.

Task:
1. Search the dependency manifests and lockfiles (for example package.json, package-lock.json, requirements.txt, poetry.lock, uv.lock, pom.xml, build.gradle, go.mod, Cargo.lock, Gemfile.lock) and any Dockerfiles for the affected packages, including transitive dependencies.
2. If an affected version is in use, upgrade it to the fixed version for its release line with the project's package manager, so the lockfile is regenerated. Prefer the smallest upgrade that fixes it.
3. If there is no fix, or the upgrade would break the build, do not guess: explain the risk and the safest workaround instead.
4. Run the tests and summarise what changed and why.
5. If nothing in the project is affected, say so and change nothing.

Reference: https://insights.sbomify.com/CVE-2017-5242/ (Markdown: https://insights.sbomify.com/CVE-2017-5242/index.md)
```

## Sources

- CVE record: https://www.cve.org/CVERecord?id=CVE-2017-5242
- NVD: https://nvd.nist.gov/vuln/detail/CVE-2017-5242
- OSV: https://osv.dev/vulnerability/CVE-2017-5242

---
From sbomify Insights: https://insights.sbomify.com/CVE-2017-5242/
Summaries are generated and may contain mistakes; the official description above is the record.