7.8

CVE-2020-5210: nethack Classic Buffer Overflow

CVSS: 7.8v3.1HighModified
AliasesUBUNTU-CVE-2020-5210DEBIAN-CVE-2020-5210
Published 28-01-2020Last modified 04-08-2024
Open JSON

Vulnerability summary

CVE-2020-5210 is a high (CVSS 7.8) Classic Buffer Overflow vulnerability in nethack. EPSS estimates a 0.80% chance of exploitation in the next 30 days, higher than 55.8% of scored vulnerabilities.

Overall risk
31/100
0100
Medium · default modelHow is this calculated?
CVSS score
7.8/10
010
High · v3.1 (NVD)
EPSS score
0.80%
0%100%
Low · 0.00 pp in 30 days
KEVNot listedIn no KEV catalog
RansomwareNone recordedNo known use recorded
Public exploits0No public exploits recorded

Advisory lineage

Upstream 0 · Downstream 1
MGASA-2021-0077

Timeline

  1. 28-01-2020
    PublishedVulnerability first disclosed.
  2. 04-08-2024
    Last modifiedVulnerability information updated.

Description

In NetHack before 3.6.5, an invalid argument to the -w command line option can cause a buffer overflow resulting in a crash or remote code execution/privilege escalation. This vulnerability affects systems that have NetHack installed suid/sgid and shared systems that allow users to influence command line options. Users should upgrade to NetHack 3.6.5.

CVSS metrics

5 scores · 4 sources · 2 versions

EPSS trend

Probability

0.80%

Chance of exploitation in the next 30 days

Percentile

56%

Versus all other CVEs

30-day change

0.00 pp

From 0.80% on 18-09-2026

18-09-202618-10-2026
EPSS score
0.80%

Known exploited

Compare KEV catalogs

Not in any of the 3 tracked catalogs.

Public exploits

0 found

No public exploits indexed.

Weaknesses

CWE · root cause

Affected systems

Debian1 product
  • nethack< 3.6.6-1
Nethack1 product
Ubuntu1 product
  • nethackAll versions (No fix recorded)

3 vendors · 3 products

References

6 links