CVE-2018-14879 Memory corruption in n/a

High 7.0 Published 3 Oct 2019 Updated 3 Dec 2025

A buffer overflow in tcpdump's command-line argument parser allows attackers to execute arbitrary code or cause a denial of service.

Exploited in the wild: Not known
Login needed: Not needed
Attackable: Local or same network only
Victim action needed: A user has to click or open something
Fix: Available

What is CVE-2018-14879?

CVE-2018-14879 is a high-severity memory corruption vulnerability in Apple Mac Os X, published on 3 Oct 2019. It can only be exploited from the same machine or local network, and only if a user opens a file or follows a link.

Official description

The command-line argument parser in tcpdump before 4.9.3 has a buffer overflow in tcpdump.c:get_next_file().

Weakness: CWE-120

Which versions are affected by CVE-2018-14879?

It affects 7 products.

Products include Apple Mac Os X, Debian Debian Linux, F5 Traffix Signaling Delivery Controller, Fedoraproject Fedora, Opensuse Leap, Redhat Enterprise Linux and 1 more.

How do I fix CVE-2018-14879?

Upgrade to a fixed version.

Upgrade to the fixed version. Memory-safe languages, compiler hardening and fuzzing prevent most new cases. More about Memory corruption.

Is CVE-2018-14879 being exploited?

There is no known exploitation of CVE-2018-14879 in the wild and no public exploit code.

Public exploit code: 1 proofs of concept on GitHub.

All Apple Mac Os X vulnerabilities

Sources

Also known as ALPINE-CVE-2018-14879, DEBIAN-CVE-2018-14879, GHSA-x5g3-55pg-9g4m, UBUNTU-CVE-2018-14879.