CVE DATABASE / CVE-2003-0161
CVE-2003-0161
CVSS 10 · HIGH
Summary
The prescan() function in the address parser (parseaddr.c) in Sendmail before 8.12.9 does not properly handle certain conversions from char and int types, which can cause a length check to be disabled when Sendmail misinterprets an input value as a special "NOCHAR" control value, allowing attackers to cause a denial of service and possibly execute arbitrary code via a buffer overflow attack using messages, a different vulnerability than CVE-2002-1337.
CVSS 2.0 breakdown
| Base score | 10 (HIGH) |
| Vector | AV:N/AC:L/Au:N/C:C/I:C/A:C |
| Attack vector | NETWORK |
| Attack complexity | LOW |
| Confidentiality | COMPLETE |
| Integrity | COMPLETE |
| Availability | COMPLETE |
Affected products
Sendmail sendmailSendmail sendmail switchCompaq tru64Hp hp-uxHp hp-ux series 700Hp hp-ux series 800Hp sisSun solarisSun sunos
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References
- ftp://ftp.caldera.com/pub/security/OpenLinux/CSSA-2003-016.0.txt
- ftp://ftp.freebsd.org/pub/FreeBSD/CERT/advisories/FreeBSD-SA-03:07.sendmail.asc
- ftp://ftp.sco.com/pub/updates/OpenServer/SCOSA-2004.11/SCOSA-2004.11.txt
- ftp://patches.sgi.com/support/free/security/advisories/20030401-01-P
- http://distro.conectiva.com.br/atualizacoes/?id=a&anuncio=000614
- http://lists.apple.com/mhonarc/security-announce/msg00028.html
- http://lists.grok.org.uk/pipermail/full-disclosure/2003-March/004295.html
- http://marc.info/?l=bugtraq&m=104896621106790&w=2
- http://marc.info/?l=bugtraq&m=104897487512238&w=2
- http://marc.info/?l=bugtraq&m=104914999806315&w=2
- http://sunsolve.sun.com/search/document.do?assetkey=1-26-52620-1
- http://sunsolve.sun.com/search/document.do?assetkey=1-26-52700-1
- http://sunsolve.sun.com/search/document.do?assetkey=1-77-1001088.1-1
- http://www.cert.org/advisories/CA-2003-12.html
- http://www.debian.org/security/2003/dsa-278
Data: NIST NVD. NVD last modified 2026-04-16. Always verify against the vendor advisory before acting.