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FreeBSDOperating system

CVE-2002-0391

CRITICAL · 9.8 CVSS v3.1 Published 2002-08-12
Fix available
A fix is available. Upgrade to after 4.6.1 or later.
See remediation →
100/100
Remediation priority · Urgent
High EPSS Public exploit Remotely reachable No privileges Zero-click Patch available

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
Integer overflow in xdr_array function in RPC servers for operating systems that use libc, glibc, or other code based on SunRPC including dietlibc, allows remote attackers to execute arbitrary code by passing a large number of arguments to xdr_array through RPC services such as rpc.cmsd and dmispd.

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
How this class of weakness works · CWE-190

An arithmetic operation produces a value too large for its type and wraps around to an unexpected — often tiny or negative — number. That miscalculated value then drives a memory allocation or a bounds check, opening the door to corruption. The fix is checked arithmetic and validating sizes before they're used.

General guidance for the integer overflow class — the official description and references above are authoritative for this specific CVE. Want a bespoke review and a reviewed fix? Ask our team →

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
Affected:<= 4.6.1
OpenBSDOperating system
Affected:= 3.1
SolarisOperating system
Affected:= 2.6= 9.0
SunosOperating system
Affected:= 5.5.1= 5.7= 5.8
Windows 2000Operating system
Affected:all versions
Windows NtOperating system
Affected:= 4.0
Windows XpOperating system
Affected:all versions

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
Network
Complexity
Low
Privileges
None
User interaction
None
Scope
Unchanged
Confidentiality
High
Integrity
High
Availability
High

CVSS:3.1/AV:N/AC:L/PR:N/UI:N/S:U/C:H/I:H/A:H

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 · scoped
Upgrade available Upgrade to a release after 4.6.1
Vendor patch www.cert.org →
Recommended fix Moderate confidence

Upgrade to a version beyond the affected release: FreeBSD 4.6.2+, OpenBSD 3.2+, Solaris 9+, or apply Microsoft MS02-039 patch for Windows

  1. 1. Identify the exact operating system version and patch level by running 'uname -a' or 'winver'
  2. 2. For FreeBSD systems: Upgrade to FreeBSD 4.6.2 or later from http://www.freebsd.org/
  3. 3. For OpenBSD systems: Upgrade to OpenBSD 3.2 or later from http://www.openbsd.org/
  4. 4. For Solaris/SunOS systems: Apply Sun patch 114144-01 (Solaris 2.6) or the appropriate subsequent patches from http://sunsolve.sun.com/
  5. 5. For Windows systems: Install the relevant security patch from Microsoft (MS02-039) or upgrade to a newer Windows version
  6. 6. If patches are unavailable for legacy systems, disable vulnerable RPC services (rpc.cmsd, dmispd) by adding entries to /etc/rc.conf (FreeBSD/OpenBSD) or Services applet (Windows)
  7. 7. Block RPC port 111 at the firewall for external-facing systems
  8. 8. Verify the vulnerability is remediated using a vulnerability scanner or by checking that RPC services no longer accept large array parameters
Caveat Legacy systems may have compatibility issues with newer versions; some RPC-dependent applications may not function after disabling vulnerable services

Generated from the published advisory — verify against the referenced sources before acting.

We can identify the exact fixed release, upgrade, and verify it in staging — typical engagement from $3,550. Get the upgrade done

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Free · runs locally
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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-2002-0391 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
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  • Version or environment caveats, and links to real fixes
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