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Debian LinuxOperating system · Debian

CVE-2000-0112

HIGH · 7.2 CVSS v2.0 Published 2000-02-02
Mitigation only
No fix yet — a mitigation exists. There is no fixed release. A documented workaround reduces exposure in the meantime.
See remediation →
77/100
Remediation priority · High
No privileges Zero-click

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 · unedited
The default installation of Debian GNU/Linux uses an insecure Master Boot Record (MBR) which allows a local user to boot from a floppy disk during the installation.

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 confidence

The default Debian GNU/Linux installation uses an insecure Master Boot Record (MBR) that does not prevent booting from removable media. This allows a local user to boot from a floppy disk during the installation process, potentially bypassing security controls and gaining unauthorized access to the system.

MitigationSecure the MBR by writing a protected/secure MBR and configuring BIOS to boot only from the hard drive, disabling floppy boot capability.

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
Debian LinuxOperating system
Affected:= 2.0= 2.1= 2.2

CVSS 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
Local
Complexity
Low
Authentication
None
Confidentiality
Complete
Integrity
Complete
Availability
Complete

AV:L/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 checks

Work through these to decide whether this CVE applies to you.

  1. Identify installed Debian version
    Run 'cat /etc/debian_version' or 'lsb_release -a' to get the exact Debian version number
    Affected if Version is 2.0, 2.1, or 2.2 (the affected versions)
  2. Inspect MBR for boot protection
    Use 'dd if=/dev/hda bs=512 count=1 2>/dev/null | xxd' or 'sudo hexdump -C /dev/sda -n 512' to view the MBR first 512 bytes. Look for standard Debian MBR signature versus a protected MBR (such as LILO, GRUB, or third-party MBR protectors)
    Affected if The MBR shows a default/insecure Debian MBR pattern with no boot protection installed
  3. Check for bootloader with MBR protection
    Run 'ls -la /boot/' to see what bootloader is installed. Check if LILO or GRUB is present. Inspect '/etc/lilo.conf' or '/boot/grub/menu.lst' for MBR protection settings
    Affected if No bootloader with MBR protection is configured, or the system relies on default MBR
  4. Verify boot device restrictions
    Check BIOS boot order configuration through 'dmidecode' if available, or inspect '/proc/bootp' or system documentation. On running systems, check if floppy drive is accessible at boot: 'ls /dev/fd0' or 'cat /proc/sys/dev/cdrom/info'
    Affected if Floppy boot capability is enabled in BIOS or no boot restrictions are configured

A defender is affected if running Debian 2.0, 2.1, or 2.2 with an unpatched default MBR that allows booting from removable media like floppy disks.

Generated from the published advisory. Verify against your own configuration.

Check your environment

Paste your version and any relevant configuration and it will be compared against the affected criteria above. Do not include secrets or credentials.

AI-assisted, checked against the advisory. Informational, not a guarantee.

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 data
Mitigation available No clean upgrade yet — mitigate in the meantime
Mitigation

Secure the MBR by writing a protected/secure MBR and configuring BIOS to boot only from the hard drive, disabling floppy boot capability.

Fix this in Debian Linux Scoped from the published advisory
  • Consultation2.0 h
  • Implementation2.0 h
  • Testing1.0 h
  • Review / QA1.0 h
6.0 hours of engineering $1,090
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References Go to the primary sourcePrimary sources — vendor advisories, patches and trackers. Where our summary and a reference disagree, the reference wins.

Primary sources

Practitioner notes

Contributed

Peer-ranked notes from engineers who’ve handled CVE-2000-0112 in production — separate from our analysis above.

No notes yet

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What this is

A place for practitioners to share what actually worked: a mitigation you’ve tested, a configuration change, a version- or environment-specific caveat, or a link to a verified patch. The most useful notes rise to the top as peers upvote them, so the signal stays high.

What belongs here
  • Verified mitigations, workarounds, and config changes
  • Version or environment caveats, and links to real fixes
  • No weaponised exploit code, or anything meant to cause harm
  • No spam, self-promotion, credentials, or personal data