FreeBSDOperating system
CVE-1999-0798
Official description Straight from the sourceThe vendor's or NVD's own wording, published unedited. Authoritative, but often terse — it says what broke, rarely what to do.
NVD · uneditedBuffer overflow in bootpd on OpenBSD, FreeBSD, and Linux systems via a malformed header type.
Technical summary Written by usOur analysis, written from the advisory, the CVSS vector and the affected-version data. It adds context the advisory leaves out, and never invents facts that are not in the source.
dbcve analysis · moderate confidenceBuffer overflow vulnerability in the bootpd daemon (Bootstrap Protocol server) on OpenBSD, FreeBSD, and Linux systems. The overflow is triggered by sending a malformed header type to the service, allowing remote attackers to execute arbitrary code with elevated privileges.
Verify against the referenced sources before acting — the references below are authoritative for this CVE, this summary is not.
Affected products & versions What the vendor confirmedThe version ranges the vendor confirmed as vulnerable. If your version sits inside a range here, treat yourself as exposed until you have upgraded.
NVD · CPE data
FreeBSDOperating system
= 6.2
LinuxOperating system
all versionsall versions= 2.3= 2.4all versionsall versions= 7.0= 7.0.1CVSS breakdown How the score is builtThe industry scoring standard. It rates how the flaw is reached, what it takes to exploit, and what an attacker gains — the score is derived from those, not the other way round.
From the vector- Attack vector
- Network
- Complexity
- Low
- Authentication
- None
- Confidentiality
- Complete
- Integrity
- Complete
- Availability
- Complete
AV:N/AC:L/Au:N/C:C/I:C/A:C
Am I affected? How to checkSteps we derive from the advisory and the affected-version data, so you can decide whether this CVE reaches your setup. They are a guide, not a scan — your own configuration is the authority.
dbcve checksWork through these to decide whether this CVE applies to you.
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Check if bootpd daemon is installedOn Linux: rpm -qa | grep -i bootpd or dpkg -l | grep -i bootp. On BSD: pkg_info | grep -i bootp. Check for binary at /usr/sbin/bootpd or /usr/etc/bootpdAffected if bootpd package or binary is found on the system
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Check if bootpd service is runningOn Linux: ps aux | grep bootpd or systemctl status bootpd. On BSD: ps -ax | grep bootpd. Check for process listening on UDP port 67Affected if bootpd process is actively running
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Determine bootpd versionRun bootpd -v or bootpd --version. If not available, check package version with rpm -q or dpkg -sAffected if Installed version matches affected ranges: FreeBSD 6.2, OpenBSD 2.3/2.4, Sco Unixware 7.0/7.0.1, or any version on Redhat Linux, Bsdi Bsd Os, Sco Openserver, Sco Internet Faststart
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Check if bootpd listens on networkRun netstat -ulnp | grep 67 or ss -ulnp | grep 67 to see if UDP port 67 (bootps) is bound. Use nmap -sU -p 67 <localhost> to verifyAffected if bootpd is listening on UDP port 67 and accessible from network
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Check bootpd startup configurationOn Linux: chkconfig --list bootpd or systemctl list-unit-files. On BSD: check /etc/rc.conf for bootpd_enable="YES"Affected if bootpd is configured to start automatically at system boot
A system is affected if bootpd is installed, running, and listening on network ports, especially if the version matches the listed affected ranges or the OS is one of the listed unsupported distributions.
Generated from the published advisory. Verify against your own configuration.
Remediation Closing itWhat it takes to close this. Where a vendor fix exists we point at it; where none exists we say so plainly, and can build one. Effort estimates are scoped from the advisory, not from your codebase.
From vendor dataUpdate bootpd to the latest patched version, or migrate to a modern DHCP server (ISC dhcpd, dnsmasq, or native OS DHCP services) if bootpd is no longer maintained. If the service is unused, disable or remove it entirely.
Fix this in FreeBSD
Scoped from the published advisory
- Consultation2.0 h
- Implementation2.0 h
- Testing2.0 h
- Review / QA1.0 h
An estimate, not a bill — we confirm scope with you before any work starts. Need it this week? Rush from $1,984.
Scan for this in your stack
Free · runs locallyCheck whether your project pulls in CVE-1999-0798 — or any other known-vulnerable package — straight from your lock files. Free and open source; it runs locally and uploads nothing.
References Go to the primary sourcePrimary sources — vendor advisories, patches and trackers. Where our summary and a reference disagree, the reference wins.
Primary sourcesPractitioner notes
ContributedPeer-ranked notes from engineers who’ve handled CVE-1999-0798 in production — separate from our analysis above.
The advisory tells you what broke. It rarely tells you what actually worked. If you’ve dealt with this one, that detail is what the next engineer is searching for.
- The version that genuinely resolved it — not the one the vendor claimed
- A config change or rule that shut the vector down
- A gotcha in the upgrade path that cost you an afternoon
No notes yet
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- Verified mitigations, workarounds, and config changes
- Version or environment caveats, and links to real fixes
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