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NVD / CVE Program· CNA mitre

CVE-2003-0308: The Sendmail 8.12.3 package in Debian GNU/Linux 3.0 does not securely create temporary files, which could allow local users to gain…

HighCVSS 7.2 · v2.0—No exploit Fix available

Noroxi assessment

Priority: Monitor (action score 28/100)

  • The sources we track (CISA KEV, Exploit-DB, Metasploit, Nuclei, GitHub) show no public exploit code or exploitation in the wild.
  • Probability of exploitation in the next 30 days: 0.39% (FIRST EPSS).
  • No special conditions are required; it is repeatable.
  • Fixed version: sendmail (Debian:12) 8.12.9-2; sendmail (Debian:3.0) 8.12.3-6.4.

Low priority for now. Upgrade to sendmail (Debian:12) 8.12.9-2; sendmail (Debian:3.0) 8.12.3-6.4 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 Sendmail 8.12.3 package in Debian GNU/Linux 3.0 does not securely create temporary files, which could allow local users to gain additional privileges via (1) expn, (2) checksendmail, or (3) doublebounce.pl.

Published
May 15, 2003
Updated
Jun 16, 2026
EPSS
0.3% · 34th percentile
CWE
—

Report tools

JSON

Action score

28

Monitor

Low priority for now.

CVSS
28 / 40 · 7.2 / 10
CISA KEV
0 / 30 · Not listed
EPSS
0 / 30 · 0.3%

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  • Not in KEV: no record of exploitation in the wild
  • No public exploit code on record
  • A fix has been released

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  • when exploit code appears or is weaponized
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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
sendmailsendmail
debiandebian linux

Affected versions

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

  • debian debian linux3.0
  • sendmail sendmail8.12.3
  • sendmail sendmail8.12.9
  • sendmail sendmail8.9.3

Package-level exposure

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

EcosystemPackageAffected rangeFix
Debian:12sendmailbefore 8.12.9-28.12.9-2
Debian:3.0sendmailbefore 8.12.3-6.48.12.3-6.4

Same product

sendmail: all records

Other highest-scoring records for the same primary product.

  • CVE-2002-1337Buffer overflow in Sendmail 5.79 to 8.12.7 allows remote attackers to execute arbitrary code via certain formatted address fields, related…
    62This week
  • CVE-2003-0161The prescan() function in the address parser (parseaddr.c) in Sendmail before 8.12.9 does not properly handle certain conversions from char…
    52Plan
  • CVE-2006-0058Signal handler race condition in Sendmail 8.13.x before 8.13.6 allows remote attackers to execute arbitrary code by triggering timeouts in…
    39Monitor

Published before and after this one in the same product

  • ← EarlierCVE-2002-2261Dec 31, 2002 · Sendmail 8.9.0 through 8.12.6 allows remote attackers to bypass relaying restrictions enforced by the 'check_relay' function by spoofing a…
    31Monitor
  • ← EarlierCVE-2002-2423Dec 31, 2002 · Sendmail 8.12.0 through 8.12.6 truncates log messages longer than 100 characters, which allows remote attackers to prevent the IP address…
    25Monitor
  • Later →CVE-2003-0688Oct 20, 2003 · The DNS map code in Sendmail 8.12.8 and earlier, when using the "enhdnsbl" feature, does not properly initialize certain data structures…
    21Monitor

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:sendmail8.12.9-2 · Debian:12Package registry (OSV)

Exploit status

No known public exploit

No public exploit has been observed yet. That doesn't mean you're safe, only that the bar is a little higher.

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.

No dated events beyond publication.

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:L/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 (4 more)

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

All records