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NVD / CVE Program· CNA mitre

CVE-2003-0143: The pop_msg function in qpopper 4.0.x before 4.0.5fc2 does not null terminate a message buffer after a call to Qvsnprintf, which could allow…

CriticalCVSS 10.0 · v2.0—Proof of concept Fix available

Noroxi assessment

Priority: Plan (action score 43/100)

  • Public proof-of-concept code exists (Exploit-DB); there is no record of exploitation in the wild.
  • Probability of exploitation in the next 30 days: 8.6% (FIRST EPSS); higher than 95.1% of all records.
  • No special conditions are required; it is repeatable.
  • Fixed version: qpopper (Debian:3.0) 4.0.4-2.woody.3.

Add it to your regular patch cycle. Upgrade to qpopper (Debian:3.0) 4.0.4-2.woody.3 or later.

Generated automatically from the record's data: CVSS (NVD and CNA), CISA KEV and SSVC, FIRST EPSS, exploit sources, fixed versions. How we calculate it

Primary sources: NVD · CVE.org · FIRST EPSS

The pop_msg function in qpopper 4.0.x before 4.0.5fc2 does not null terminate a message buffer after a call to Qvsnprintf, which could allow authenticated users to execute arbitrary code via a buffer overflow in a mdef command with a long macro name.

Published
Mar 18, 2003
Updated
Jun 16, 2026
EPSS
8.6% · 95th percentile
CWE
—

Report tools

JSON

Action score

43

Plan

Add it to your regular patch cycle.

CVSS
40 / 40 · 10.0 / 10
CISA KEV
0 / 30 · Not listed
EPSS
3 / 30 · 8.6%

Get told when this record changes

  • Not in KEV: no record of exploitation in the wild
  • Proof of concept exists, no weaponized module
  • A fix has been released

If any of these changes, we'll tell you in the daily email digest.

Follow CVE-2003-0143

When you'll hear from us

  • when it enters CISA KEV
  • when exploit code appears or is weaponized
  • when the record is updated (including a fixed version)
  • when EPSS rises 20 points in a week

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Noroxi analysis

What does it mean in your environment?

The assessment above is generated automatically from the record's data; it doesn't know your environment. Our team verifies on your systems whether this vulnerability is actually exploitable and which mitigation is enough.

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Affected systems

Is your version affected?

Pick the product and type the version you run. It's compared with this record's version ranges in your browser; the version isn't sent anywhere.

VendorProduct
qualcommqpopper

Affected versions

NVD version ranges (for catalog products). Add the product to your stack with a version and matching uses these.

  • qualcomm qpopper4.0.1
  • qualcomm qpopper4.0.2
  • qualcomm qpopper4.0.3
  • qualcomm qpopper4.0.4

Package-level exposure

OSV and GitHub Advisory data: ecosystem, package and range. SBOM matching uses this table.

EcosystemPackageAffected rangeFix
Debian:3.0qpopperbefore 4.0.4-2.woody.34.0.4-2.woody.3

Same product

qualcomm: all records

Other highest-scoring records for the same primary product.

  • CVE-1999-0006Buffer overflow in POP servers based on BSD/Qualcomm's qpopper allows remote attackers to gain root access using a long PASS command.
    43Plan
  • CVE-2001-1046Buffer overflow in qpopper (aka qpop or popper) 4.0 through 4.0.2 allows remote attackers to gain privileges via a long username.
    41Plan
  • CVE-1999-0822Buffer overflow in Qpopper (qpop) 3.0 allows remote root access via AUTH command.
    41Plan

Published before and after this one in the same product

  • ← EarlierCVE-2002-0454Aug 12, 2002 · Qpopper (aka in.qpopper or popper) 4.0.3 and earlier allows remote attackers to cause a denial of service (CPU consumption) via a very…
    22Monitor
  • ← EarlierCVE-2002-0889Oct 4, 2002 · Buffer overflow in Qpopper (popper) 4.0.4 and earlier allows local users to cause a denial of service and possibly execute arbitrary code…
    18Monitor
  • Later →CVE-2003-1452Dec 31, 2003 · Untrusted search path vulnerability in Qualcomm qpopper 4.0 through 4.05 allows local users to execute arbitrary code by modifying the PATH…
    14Monitor

Remediation

Which version to upgrade to

Fix versions compiled from the vendor, package registries and Microsoft. Verify the vendor's note before upgrading.

Product / packageFixed versionSource
debian:qpopper4.0.4-2.woody.3 · Debian:3.0Package registry (OSV)

Exploit status

Proof of concept available

A public proof of concept or detection signature exists. Exploit knowledge is out there; don't delay patching.

Evidence

  • Exploit-DB entry ×1

Noroxi does not host or link to exploit code. Metasploit module names and Nuclei template ids are shown (names, not code); Exploit-DB entries and PoC repositories are given as counts only.

Public exploit evidence
SourceKindDate
Exploit-DB entryremote2003-03-10

Research context

For pentesters and researchers: attack profile, score disagreement, timeline, patch commits, credits, variant and chain candidates, bug bounty scope. All derived from existing data; no exploit code.

Timeline

From publication to today: proof of concept, Metasploit module, CISA KEV and fix record. Dates are as reported by the sources.

  1. First PoC-8 d
  2. Published
  3. TodayNov 15, 2026+8643 d

Not on record for this CVE: EPSS history · patch commit or PR link · researcher credit · variant or chain candidate · public bounty program.

Technical details

Attack conditions

  • No special conditions are required; it is repeatable.

If successful

Confidentiality
C · data can be read
Integrity
C · data or configuration can be modified
Availability
C · the service can be disrupted
Attack complexity
Low
Confidentiality impact
C
Integrity impact
C
Availability impact
C

Weakness class (CWE)

—

CVSS vector

AV:N/AC:L/Au:N/C:C/I:C/A:C

nvd-primary

Attack context

MITRE CAPEC attack patterns and ATT&CK techniques for this weakness class (CWE). A starting point for detection rules and threat hunting.

MITRE has no CAPEC/ATT&CK mapping for this CWE.

References

Show all references (6 more)

Vendor advisories and official records. Exploit/PoC links are deliberately left out.

All records