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CVE-2003-1232· NVD / CVE Program· CNA mitre

Emacs 21.2.1 does not prompt or warn the user before executing Lisp code in the local variables section of a text file, which allows user-as

Emacs 21.2.1 does not prompt or warn the user before executing Lisp code in the local variables section of a text file, which allows user-assisted attackers to execute arbitrary commands, as demonstrated using the mode-name variable.

MediumCVSS 5.1 · v2.0—Proof of concept No fix recorded
Published
Dec 31, 2003
Updated
Jun 16, 2026
EPSS
3.0% · 87th percentile
CWE
—
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Report tools

JSON

Action score

21

Monitor

Low priority for now.

CVSS
20 / 40 · 5.1 / 10
CISA KEV
0 / 30 · Not listed
EPSS
1 / 30 · 3.0%

Affected systems

VendorProduct
gnuemacs

Affected versions

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

  • gnu emacs21.2.1

Same product

gnu: all records

Other highest-scoring records for the same primary product.

  • CVE-2007-6109Stack-based buffer overflow in emacs allows user-assisted attackers to cause a denial of service (application crash) and possibly have unspe
    41Plan
  • CVE-2024-39331In Emacs before 29.4, org-link-expand-abbrev in lisp/ol.el expands a %(...) link abbrev even when it specifies an unsafe function, such as s
    39Monitor
  • CVE-2022-48337GNU Emacs through 28.2 allows attackers to execute commands via shell metacharacters in the name of a source-code file, because lib-src/etag
    39Monitor
  • CVE-2012-0035Untrusted search path vulnerability in EDE in CEDET before 1.0.1, as used in GNU Emacs before 23.4 and other products, allows local users to
    38Monitor
  • CVE-2017-14482GNU Emacs before 25.3 allows remote attackers to execute arbitrary code via email with crafted "Content-Type: text/enriched" data containing
    36Monitor
  • CVE-2024-53920In elisp-mode.el in GNU Emacs before 30.1, a user who chooses to invoke elisp-completion-at-point (for code completion) on untrusted Emacs L
    31Monitor

Remediation

Which version to upgrade to

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

No fix version is recorded for this entry. Check the references for vendor advisories.

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 entrylocal2002-12-31

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-365 d
  2. Published
  3. TodaySep 30, 2026+8309 d
EPSS, last 120 days

FIRST EPSS daily score; only changes of 0.01 or more are recorded (step chart).

Patch and commit links

Commit, PR and diff links among the references. A starting point for patch-diffing and variant hunting; fixes, not exploits.

No commit or PR link among the references.

Credits

All researchers

Finders, reporters and analysts named in the CNA record. Click a name for that researcher’s other records.

No credits in the CNA record.

Variant candidates

Same product, same weakness class, within 18 months. If the patch missed the root cause, the sibling bug is here.

No nightly-computed relations.

Chain candidates

An authentication bypass and a privilege-requiring bug in the same product, published close together: combined they may become an unauthenticated path.

—

Bug bounty scope

No known public program.

Source: bounty-targets-data (public HackerOne, Bugcrowd, Intigriti, YesWeHack listings).

Technical details

Attack conditions

  • Special conditions such as timing or configuration are required.

If successful

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

Weakness class (CWE)

—

CVSS vector

AV:N/AC:H/Au:N/C:P/I:P/A:P

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.

Noroxi analysis

No Noroxi analysis for this record yet

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Change log

No changes recorded on tracked fields yet. Score, KEV, exploit maturity and fix status changes appear here.

References

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

All records