# CVE-2018-12549: Null dereference in Eclipse OpenJ9

> The OpenJ9 JIT compiler may omit a null check, potentially causing a crash or denial of service when executing unsafe calls.

- **Severity:** Critical 9.8 (`CVSS:3.0/AV:N/AC:L/PR:N/UI:N/S:U/C:H/I:H/A:H`)
- **Exploited in the wild:** Not known
- **Login needed:** Not needed
- **Attackable:** Over the internet
- **Victim action needed:** Not needed
- **Fix available:** Yes
- **Published:** 11 Feb 2019
- **Updated:** 5 Aug 2024
- **Also known as:** GHSA-xpfc-p72p-hwch

## What is CVE-2018-12549?

CVE-2018-12549 is a critical vulnerability in Redhat Enterprise Linux Desktop, published on 11 Feb 2019. An attacker can exploit it over the internet without logging in, with no action from the victim.

### Official description

In Eclipse OpenJ9 version 0.11.0, the OpenJ9 JIT compiler may incorrectly omit a null check on the receiver object of an Unsafe call when accelerating it.

Weakness: CWE-20 (Improper Input Validation), CWE-111 (Direct Use of Unsafe JNI)

## Which versions are affected by CVE-2018-12549?

It affects 5 products.


Products: Eclipse Openj9, Redhat Enterprise Linux Desktop, Redhat Enterprise Linux Server, Redhat Enterprise Linux Workstation, Redhat Satellite.

## How do I fix CVE-2018-12549?

Upgrade to a fixed version.

## Is CVE-2018-12549 being exploited?

There is no known exploitation of CVE-2018-12549 in the wild and no public exploit code.

## Other vulnerabilities in Redhat Enterprise Linux Desktop

- [CVE-2021-41035](https://insights.sbomify.com/CVE-2021-41035/): Security feature bypass in Eclipse OMR (critical 9.8)
- [CVE-2020-27221](https://insights.sbomify.com/CVE-2020-27221/): Memory corruption in Eclipse OpenJ9 (critical 9.8)
- [CVE-2019-11772](https://insights.sbomify.com/CVE-2019-11772/): Memory corruption in Eclipse OpenJ9 (critical 9.8)
- [CVE-2018-12547](https://insights.sbomify.com/CVE-2018-12547/): Memory corruption in Eclipse OpenJ9 (critical 9.8)
- [CVE-2018-12548](https://insights.sbomify.com/CVE-2018-12548/): Memory corruption in Eclipse OpenJ9 (critical 9.8)

## Fix prompt for AI coding agents

```text
Check this codebase for CVE-2018-12549 and fix it if it is affected.

What it is: CVE-2018-12549 is a critical vulnerability in Redhat Enterprise Linux Desktop, published on 11 Feb 2019. An attacker can exploit it over the internet without logging in, with no action from the victim.
Exploitation: There is no known exploitation of CVE-2018-12549 in the wild and no public exploit code.

Affected product: Redhat Enterprise Linux Desktop. 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-2018-12549/ (Markdown: https://insights.sbomify.com/CVE-2018-12549/index.md)
```

## Sources

- CVE record: https://www.cve.org/CVERecord?id=CVE-2018-12549
- NVD: https://nvd.nist.gov/vuln/detail/CVE-2018-12549
- OSV: https://osv.dev/vulnerability/CVE-2018-12549

---
From sbomify Insights: https://insights.sbomify.com/CVE-2018-12549/
Summaries are generated and may contain mistakes; the official description above is the record.