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OpensshApplication · OpenBSD

CVE-2003-0787

HIGH · 7.5 CVSS v2.0 Published 2003-11-17
Mitigation only
No fix yet — a mitigation exists. There is no fixed release. A documented workaround reduces exposure in the meantime.
See remediation →
84/100
Remediation priority · High
Remotely reachable 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 PAM conversation function in OpenSSH 3.7.1 and 3.7.1p1 interprets an array of structures as an array of pointers, which allows attackers to modify the stack and possibly gain privileges.

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 confidence

In OpenSSH 3.7.1 and 3.7.1p1, the PAM conversation function incorrectly interprets an array of structures as an array of pointers. This type confusion allows an attacker to corrupt the stack via malformed PAM conversation data, potentially leading to privilege escalation.

MitigationUpgrade OpenSSH to version 3.7.2 or later, which contains the corrected PAM conversation handling. Alternatively, disable PAM authentication in sshd_config if PAM is not required.

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
OpensshApplication
Affected:= 3.7.1= 3.7.1p1

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
Authentication
None
Confidentiality
Partial
Integrity
Partial
Availability
Partial

AV:N/AC:L/Au:N/C:P/I:P/A:P

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 OpenSSH version
    Run 'sshd -v 2>&1' or 'ssh -V' to display the version, or check the package database with 'pkg_info openssh' on OpenBSD
    Affected if The version displayed is 3.7.1 or 3.7.1p1
  2. Confirm PAM authentication is enabled
    Inspect the sshd_config file (typically /etc/ssh/sshd_config) for the directive 'UsePAM yes'
    Affected if UsePAM is set to yes, indicating PAM authentication is active
  3. Verify sshd is using PAM at runtime
    Check if the sshd process is linked against PAM libraries (on OpenBSD, examine /usr/sbin/sshd or check ldd output if available)
    Affected if sshd is linked to PAM libraries and PAM authentication is in use
  4. Confirm OpenBSD system
    Run 'uname -a' to verify the operating system is OpenBSD
    Affected if Running OpenBSD with OpenSSH 3.7.1/3.7.1p1 and PAM enabled

You are affected if running OpenSSH version 3.7.1 or 3.7.1p1 on OpenBSD with PAM authentication (UsePAM yes) enabled.

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

Upgrade OpenSSH to version 3.7.2 or later, which contains the corrected PAM conversation handling. Alternatively, disable PAM authentication in sshd_config if PAM is not required.

Fix this in Openssh Scoped from the published advisory
  • Consultation1.0 h
  • Implementation2.0 h
  • Testing2.0 h
  • Review / QA1.0 h
6.0 hours of engineering $1,040
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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-2003-0787 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