Vulnerability · Published Mar 6, 2020 · Assigned by mitre
CVE-2020-10188
Critical 9.8
In plain English
A critical-severity security flaw in the inetutils package (Debian). There are no confirmed reports of exploitation so far. The chance it is exploited in the next 30 days is estimated at 74.3% (higher than 99.5% of all known vulnerabilities). Fixed versions are available - upgrade the affected package.
Severity (CVSS NVD)9.8Critical
Exploit odds (30 days)74.3%top 0.5% of all CVEs
Exploited in the wildNo reportsnot in CISA KEV
Attack toolingNoneno public tooling known
Official description
utility.c in telnetd in netkit telnet through 0.17 allows remote attackers to execute arbitrary code via short writes or urgent data, because of a buffer overflow involving the netclear and nextitem functions.
Affected packages & fixed versions
| Ecosystem | Package | Fixed in | Advisory |
|---|---|---|---|
| Debian:12 | inetutils | 2:1.9.4-12 | DEBIAN-CVE-2020-10188 |
| Debian:13 | inetutils | 2:1.9.4-12 | DEBIAN-CVE-2020-10188 |
| Debian:14 | inetutils | 2:1.9.4-12 | DEBIAN-CVE-2020-10188 |
| Debian:12 | netkit-telnet-ssl | 0.17.17+0.1-2woody3 | DEBIAN-CVE-2020-10188 |
| Debian:13 | netkit-telnet-ssl | 0.17.17+0.1-2woody3 | DEBIAN-CVE-2020-10188 |
| Debian:14 | netkit-telnet-ssl | 0.17.17+0.1-2woody3 | DEBIAN-CVE-2020-10188 |
| Ubuntu:22.04:LTS | netkit-telnet-ssl | no fix listed | UBUNTU-CVE-2020-10188 |
| Ubuntu:24.04:LTS | netkit-telnet-ssl | no fix listed | UBUNTU-CVE-2020-10188 |
| Ubuntu:25.10 | netkit-telnet-ssl | no fix listed | UBUNTU-CVE-2020-10188 |
| Ubuntu:26.04:LTS | netkit-telnet-ssl | no fix listed | UBUNTU-CVE-2020-10188 |
| Ubuntu:26.10 | netkit-telnet-ssl | no fix listed | UBUNTU-CVE-2020-10188 |
Affected products (as reported)
References
- FEDORA-2020-11ea78ff8e vendor-advisory, x_refsource_FEDORA
- FEDORA-2020-e7b942a47a vendor-advisory, x_refsource_FEDORA
- FEDORA-2020-6b07ff2526 vendor-advisory, x_refsource_FEDORA
- [debian-lts-announce] 20200514 [SECURITY] [DLA 2176-1] inetutils security update mailing-list, x_refsource_MLIST
- 20200624 Telnet Vulnerability Affecting Cisco Products: June 2020 vendor-advisory, x_refsource_CISCO
- [debian-lts-announce] 20200824 [SECURITY] [DLA 2341-1] inetutils security update mailing-list, x_refsource_MLIST
- https://www.oracle.com/security-alerts/cpuApr2021.html x_refsource_MISC
- https://appgateresearch.blogspot.com/2020/02/bravestarr-fedora-31-netkit-telnetd_28.html x_refsource_MISC
- https://github.com/krb5/krb5-appl/blob/d00cd671dfe945791b33d4f1f6a5c57ae1667ef8/telnet/telnetd/utility.c#L205-L216 x_refsource_MISC
- https://www.arista.com/en/support/advisories-notices/security-advisories/10702-security-advisory-48 x_refsource_MISC
- http://www.openwall.com/lists/oss-security/2026/01/20/8