CVE-1999-0971
HighExploitation Probability (EPSS)
Low risk48th percentile - higher than 48% of all known CVEs
Summary
Buffer overflow in Exim allows local users to gain root privileges via a long :include: option in a .forward file.
Risk Assessment
Exploitation of this vulnerability could lead to unauthorized users gaining full control over the system, posing a serious security threat to the organization.
Recommendation
It is recommended to update Exim to the latest version to mitigate this vulnerability and to monitor .forward files for potential attack attempts.
Other vulnerabilities in Exim
See all- CVE-2016-1531High
Exim versions before 4.86.2, when installed setuid root, allow local users to gain privileges via the perl_startup argument.
- CVE-2026-45185Critical
Exim versions before 4.99.3, in certain GnuTLS configurations, has a use-after-free vulnerability in the BDAT body parsing path. This can lead to heap corruption when a client sends a TLS close_notify mid-body during a CHUNKING transfer, followed by a final cleartext byte on the same TCP connection.
- CVE-2026-66141High
In Exim before 4.99.5, a privilege escalation vulnerability exists via .forward files. The force_command for pipe transport is mishandled, allowing arbitrary command execution with elevated privileges.
- CVE-2026-66140High
In Exim before version 4.99.5, mishandling of arguments related to queue-name allows directory traversal outside the spool area, potentially leading to privilege escalation.
- CVE-2026-48840Medium
Exim 4.88 before 4.99.4 in some proxy configurations mishandles short payloads, disclosing uninitialized stack memory values to a client.
Original NVD description (English source)
Buffer overflow in Exim allows local users to gain root privileges via a long :include: option in a .forward file.