# CVE-2018-7685: libzypp does not reevaluate malicious rpms once downloaded

> Attackers can bypass RPM integrity checks by exploiting decoupled download and installation steps, allowing malicious packages to be installed without warnings.

- **Severity:** High 7.8 (`CVSS:3.0/AV:L/AC:L/PR:N/UI:R/S:U/C:H/I:H/A:H`)
- **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:** Yes
- **Published:** 31 Aug 2018
- **Updated:** 17 Sep 2024
- **Also known as:** DEBIAN-CVE-2018-7685, GHSA-mrf9-ghhp-cjff, UBUNTU-CVE-2018-7685

## What is CVE-2018-7685?

CVE-2018-7685 is a high-severity vulnerability in SUSE libzypp, published on 31 Aug 2018. 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 decoupled download and installation steps in libzypp before 17.5.0 could lead to a corrupted RPM being left in the cache, where a later call would not display the corrupted RPM warning and allow installation, a problem caused by malicious warnings only displayed during download.

Weakness: CWE-347 (Improper Verification of Cryptographic Signature), CWE-358 (Improperly Implemented Security Check for Standard)

## Which versions are affected by CVE-2018-7685?

It affects 1 product.


Products: Opensuse Libzypp.

## How do I fix CVE-2018-7685?

Upgrade to a fixed version.

## Is CVE-2018-7685 being exploited?

There is no known exploitation of CVE-2018-7685 in the wild and no public exploit code.

## Other vulnerabilities in SUSE libzypp

- [CVE-2026-25707](https://insights.sbomify.com/CVE-2026-25707/): Handcrafted repo metadata may cause arbitrary local files to be overwritten by libzypp (high 8.8)
- [CVE-2026-44941](https://insights.sbomify.com/CVE-2026-44941/): libzypp path traversal via "keyhint" in repomd.xml (high 8.4)
- [CVE-2017-7435](https://insights.sbomify.com/CVE-2017-7435/): libzypp accepts unsigned 3rd party repo without warning (high 8.1)
- [CVE-2017-7436](https://insights.sbomify.com/CVE-2017-7436/): libzypp accepts unsigned packages even when configured to check signatures (high 8.1)
- [CVE-2017-9269](https://insights.sbomify.com/CVE-2017-9269/): lack of keypinning in libzypp could lead to repository switching (high 7.7)

## Fix prompt for AI coding agents

```text
Check this codebase for CVE-2018-7685 and fix it if it is affected.

What it is: CVE-2018-7685 is a high-severity vulnerability in SUSE libzypp, published on 31 Aug 2018. It can only be exploited from the same machine or local network, and only if a user opens a file or follows a link.
Exploitation: There is no known exploitation of CVE-2018-7685 in the wild and no public exploit code.

Affected product: SUSE libzypp. 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-2018-7685/ (Markdown: https://insights.sbomify.com/CVE-2018-7685/index.md)
```

## Sources

- CVE record: https://www.cve.org/CVERecord?id=CVE-2018-7685
- NVD: https://nvd.nist.gov/vuln/detail/CVE-2018-7685
- OSV: https://osv.dev/vulnerability/CVE-2018-7685

---
From sbomify Insights: https://insights.sbomify.com/CVE-2018-7685/
Summaries are generated and may contain mistakes; the official description above is the record.