cupsd in CUPS 1.3.9 and earlier allows local users, and possibly remote attackers, to cause a denial of service (daemon crash) by adding a l
cupsd in CUPS 1.3.9 and earlier allows local users, and possibly remote attackers, to cause a denial of service (daemon crash) by adding a large number of RSS Subscriptions, which triggers a NULL pointer dereference. NOTE: this issue can be triggered remotely by leveraging CVE-2008-5184.
- Published
- Nov 20, 2008
- Updated
- Jun 16, 2026
- EPSS
- 9.2% · 95th percentile
- CWE
- CWE-476
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Report tools
Action score
33
Monitor
Low priority for now.
- CVSS
- 30 / 40 · 7.5 / 10
- CISA KEV
- 0 / 30 · Not listed
- EPSS
- 3 / 30 · 9.2%
Affected systems
| Vendor | Product | CPE |
|---|---|---|
| apple | cups | cpe:2.3:a:apple:cups |
| apple | mac os x | cpe:2.3:o:apple:mac_os_x |
| apple | mac os x server | cpe:2.3:o:apple:mac_os_x_server |
| opensuse | opensuse | cpe:2.3:o:opensuse:opensuse |
| debian | debian linux | cpe:2.3:o:debian:debian_linux |
Affected versions
NVD version ranges (for catalog products). Add the product to your stack with a version and matching uses these.
- apple cupsup to 1.3.9 inclusive
- apple mac os xbefore 10.5.6
- apple mac os x serverbefore 10.5.6
- debian debian linux5.0
- debian debian linux6.0
- opensuse opensuse11.0
Package-level exposure
OSV and GitHub Advisory data: ecosystem, package and range. SBOM matching uses this table.
| Ecosystem | Package | Affected range | Fix |
|---|---|---|---|
| Debian:12 | cups | before 1.3.9-13 | 1.3.9-13 |
| Debian:5.0 | cups | before 1.3.8-1+lenny9 | 1.3.8-1+lenny9 |
| Red Hat:enterprise_linux:5::client | cups-libs | before 1:1.2.4-11.18.el5_2.3 | 1:1.2.4-11.18.el5_2.3 |
| Red Hat:enterprise_linux:5::client | cups-lpd | before 1:1.2.4-11.18.el5_2.3 | 1:1.2.4-11.18.el5_2.3 |
| Red Hat:enterprise_linux:5::client_workstation | cups | before 1:1.2.4-11.18.el5_2.3 | 1:1.2.4-11.18.el5_2.3 |
| Red Hat:enterprise_linux:5::client_workstation | cups-debuginfo | before 1:1.2.4-11.18.el5_2.3 | 1:1.2.4-11.18.el5_2.3 |
| Red Hat:enterprise_linux:5::client_workstation | cups-devel | before 1:1.2.4-11.18.el5_2.3 | 1:1.2.4-11.18.el5_2.3 |
Same product
apple: all recordsOther highest-scoring records for the same primary product.
- CVE-2008-3641The Hewlett-Packard Graphics Language (HPGL) filter in CUPS before 1.3.9 allows remote attackers to execute arbitrary code via crafted pen w47Plan
- CVE-2008-0053Multiple buffer overflows in the HP-GL/2-to-PostScript filter in CUPS before 1.3.6 might allow remote attackers to execute arbitrary code vi42Plan
- CVE-2010-2941ipp.c in cupsd in CUPS 1.4.4 and earlier does not properly allocate memory for attribute values with invalid string data types, which allows41Plan
- CVE-2008-5184The web interface (cgi-bin/admin.c) in CUPS before 1.3.8 uses the guest username when a user is not logged on to the web server, which makes41Plan
- CVE-2012-6094cups (Common Unix Printing System) 'Listen localhost:631' option not honored correctly which could provide unauthorized access to the system40Plan
- CVE-2004-2154CUPS before 1.1.21rc1 treats a Location directive in cupsd.conf as case sensitive, which allows attackers to bypass intended ACLs via a prin40Plan
Remediation
Which version to upgrade to
Fix versions compiled from the vendor, package registries and Microsoft. Verify the vendor's note before upgrading.
| Product / package | Fixed version | Source |
|---|---|---|
| debian:cups | 1.3.9-13 · Debian:12 | Package registry (OSV) |
| red hat:cups | 1:1.2.4-11.18.el5_2.3 · Red Hat:enterprise_linux:5::client_workstation | Package registry (OSV) |
| red hat:cups-debuginfo | 1:1.2.4-11.18.el5_2.3 · Red Hat:enterprise_linux:5::client_workstation | Package registry (OSV) |
| red hat:cups-devel | 1:1.2.4-11.18.el5_2.3 · Red Hat:enterprise_linux:5::client_workstation | Package registry (OSV) |
| red hat:cups-libs | 1:1.2.4-11.18.el5_2.3 · Red Hat:enterprise_linux:5::client | Package registry (OSV) |
| red hat:cups-lpd | 1:1.2.4-11.18.el5_2.3 · Red Hat:enterprise_linux:5::client | Package 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.
| Source | Kind | Date |
|---|---|---|
| Exploit-DB entry | dos | 2008-11-18 |
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.
- First PoC-3 d
- Published
- TodaySep 30, 2026+6522 d
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 researchersFinders, 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
- Anyone who can reach it over the internet can trigger it.
- No account or password is required.
- No user action is required.
- No special conditions are required; it is repeatable.
If successful
- Confidentiality
- none
- Integrity
- none
- Availability
- high · the service can be disrupted
- Attack vector
- Network
- Attack complexity
- Low
- Privileges required
- None
- User interaction
- None
- Scope
- Unchanged
- Confidentiality impact
- None
- Integrity impact
- None
- Availability impact
- High
Weakness class (CWE)
CWE-476 · NULL Pointer DereferenceCVSS vector
CVSS:3.1/AV:N/AC:L/PR:N/UI:N/S:U/C:N/I:N/A:H
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
We don't hand-write analysis for all 385,000+ vulnerabilities; that wouldn't be honest. For notable, high-impact vulnerabilities our team writes the mechanism, detection and remediation steps.
We use this product, ask for helpChange log
- Fix✗ → ✓
For records you follow, these changes also arrive as notifications. →
References
- lab.gnucitizen.org/projects/cups-0day
- lists.apple.com/archives/security-announce/2009/Feb/msg00000.html
- lists.opensuse.org/opensuse-security-announce/2008-11/msg00002.html
- secunia.com/advisories/33937
- secunia.com/advisories/43521
- support.apple.com/kb/HT3438
- www.debian.org/security/2011/dsa-2176
- www.gnucitizen.org/blog/pwning-ubuntu-via-cups/
- www.mandriva.com/security/advisories?name=MDVSA-2009:028
- www.openwall.com/lists/oss-security/2008/11/19/3
- www.openwall.com/lists/oss-security/2008/11/19/4
- www.openwall.com/lists/oss-security/2008/11/20/1
- www.redhat.com/support/errata/RHSA-2008-1029.html
- www.securityfocus.com/bid/32419
- www.securitytracker.com/id?1021396
- www.vupen.com/english/advisories/2009/0422
- www.vupen.com/english/advisories/2011/0535
- bugs.launchpad.net/ubuntu/+source/cups/+bug/298241
- exchange.xforce.ibmcloud.com/vulnerabilities/46684
- oval.cisecurity.org/repository/search/definition/oval%3Aorg.mitre.oval%3Adef%3A10586
Vendor advisories and official records. Exploit/PoC links are deliberately left out.