CVE-2000-0525
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 · uneditedOpenSSH does not properly drop privileges when the UseLogin option is enabled, which allows local users to execute arbitrary commands by providing the command to the ssh daemon.
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 · high confidenceOpenSSH versions prior to the fix do not properly drop privileges when the UseLogin option is enabled, allowing local users to inject and execute arbitrary commands by passing them to the ssh daemon.
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= 1.2= 1.2.3= 2.1CVSS 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 installed OpenSSH versionRun 'sshd -v' or 'ssh -V' to display the OpenSSH version, or check your package manager for the installed openssh-server package versionAffected if The version shown is 1.2, 1.2.3, or 2.1 (any version prior to the fix)
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Locate sshd_config fileCommon locations are /etc/ssh/sshd_config, /etc/sshd_config, or /usr/local/etc/sshd_config. Check your system documentation for the exact pathAffected if You cannot locate the sshd_config file (sshd may not be installed)
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Check if UseLogin is enabledOpen the sshd_config file and search for 'UseLogin' - if present, check if it is set to 'yes' or 'yes' is uncommented next to itAffected if UseLogin is set to 'yes' or is uncommented (the vulnerability only applies when UseLogin is enabled)
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Verify sshd service statusCheck if the sshd daemon is running using 'ps aux | grep sshd' or 'systemctl status sshd' (or equivalent for your system)Affected if sshd is not running (the vulnerability cannot be exploited if the service is not active)
You are affected only if you are running OpenSSH version 1.2, 1.2.3, or 2.1 AND have UseLogin enabled in your sshd_config file.
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.
dbcve · scopedDisable the UseLogin option in sshd_config, or upgrade to a patched version of OpenSSH where the vulnerability has been addressed.
OpenSSH 2.3.0 or later / modern stable release (e.g., OpenSSH 9.x)
- 1. Check current OpenSSH version: sshd -v 2>&1
- 2. Disable the UseLogin option in /etc/ssh/sshd_config by setting UseLogin no
- 3. Restart sshd service: systemctl restart sshd (or appropriate service restart command)
- 4. Upgrade to a modern OpenSSH version (2.3.0 or later, preferably current stable release)
- 5. After upgrade, verify UseLogin is set to 'no' or remove the directive entirely (default is 'no' in modern versions)
Generated from the published advisory — verify against the referenced sources before acting.
- Consultation1.0 h
- Implementation1.0 h
- Testing1.0 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 $1,200.
Scan for this in your stack
Free · runs locallyCheck whether your project pulls in CVE-2000-0525 — 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-2000-0525 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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