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CVE-2018-16841


Samba from version 4.3.0 and before versions 4.7.12, 4.8.7 and 4.9.3 are vulnerable to a denial of service. When configured to accept smart-card authentication, Samba's KDC will call talloc_free() twice on the same memory if the principal in a validly signed certificate does not match the principal in the AS-REQ. This is only possible after authentication with a trusted certificate. talloc is robust against further corruption from a double-free with talloc_free() and directly calls abort(), terminating the KDC process.


Security Impact Summary

This vulnerability carries a MEDIUM severity rating with a CVSS v3.1 score of 6.5, indicating it can be exploited remotely over the network with relatively low complexity without requiring user interaction requiring only low-level privileges . The vulnerability impacts and availability (service disruption) for affected systems. Impacting 3 products from samba, from canonical, from debian organizations running these solutions should prioritize assessment and patching.

Historical Context

First disclosed in 2018, this vulnerability was reported during a period defined by widespread IoT adoption challenges, mobile security concerns, and the emergence of advanced persistent threat (APT) techniques. Contemporary mitigation strategies focused on secure development practices and third-party component vetting.


Published

2018-11-28T14:29:00.347

Last Modified

2024-11-21T03:53:25.367

Status

Modified

Source

[email protected]

Severity

CVSSv3.1: 6.5 (MEDIUM)

CVSSv2 Vector

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

  • Access Vector: NETWORK
  • Access Complexity: LOW
  • Authentication: SINGLE
  • Confidentiality Impact: NONE
  • Integrity Impact: NONE
  • Availability Impact: PARTIAL
Exploitability Score

8.0

Impact Score

2.9

Weaknesses
  • Type: Secondary
    CWE-416
  • Type: Primary
    CWE-415

Affected Vendors & Products
Type Vendor Product Version/Range Vulnerable?
Application samba samba < 4.7.12 Yes
Application samba samba < 4.8.7 Yes
Application samba samba < 4.9.3 Yes
Operating System canonical ubuntu_linux 12.04 Yes
Operating System canonical ubuntu_linux 14.04 Yes
Operating System canonical ubuntu_linux 16.04 Yes
Operating System canonical ubuntu_linux 18.04 Yes
Operating System canonical ubuntu_linux 18.10 Yes
Operating System debian debian_linux 9.0 Yes

References

How SecUtils Interprets This CVE

SecUtils normalizes and enriches National Vulnerability Database (NVD) records by standardizing vendor and product identifiers, aggregating vulnerability metadata from both NVD and MITRE sources, and providing structured context for security teams. For samba's affected products, we extract Common Platform Enumeration (CPE) data, Common Weakness Enumeration (CWE) classifications, CVSS severity metrics, and reference data to enable rapid vulnerability prioritization and asset correlation. This record contains no exploit code, proof-of-concept instructions, or attack methodologies—only defensive intelligence necessary for patch management, risk assessment, and security operations.