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MemcachedApplication · Memcachedb

CVE-2009-2415

HIGH · 10.0 CVSS v2.0 Published 2009-08-10
Mitigation only
No fix yet — a mitigation exists. There is no fixed release. A documented workaround reduces exposure in the meantime.
See remediation →
100/100
Remediation priority · Urgent
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
Multiple integer overflows in memcached 1.1.12 and 1.2.2 allow remote attackers to execute arbitrary code via vectors involving length attributes that trigger heap-based buffer overflows.

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

Integer overflows in memcached's handling of length attributes allow remote attackers to trigger heap-based buffer overflows, leading to arbitrary code execution. The vulnerability affects versions 1.1.12 and 1.2.2.

MitigationUpgrade memcached to a patched version (1.2.5 or later) that properly validates length attributes and prevents integer overflow conditions.

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
MemcachedApplication
Affected:= 1.1.12= 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
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 checks

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

  1. Identify memcached binary version
    Run 'memcached -h' or 'memcached -V' to display version information, or check the package manager (e.g., 'dpkg -l | grep memcached' or 'rpm -qa | grep memcached')
    Affected if The displayed version is exactly 1.1.12 or 1.2.2
  2. Confirm running memcached process
    Check for running memcached processes using 'ps aux | grep memcached' or 'pgrep memcached'
    Affected if A memcached process is running and its version (from step 1) matches 1.1.12 or 1.2.2
  3. Verify network exposure
    Check which interfaces memcached is listening on using 'netstat -tlnp | grep memcached' or 'ss -tlnp | grep memcached'
    Affected if Memcached is bound to a network interface (0.0.0.0 or non-loopback IP) rather than only localhost (127.0.0.1)

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.

dbcve · scoped
Mitigation available No clean upgrade yet — mitigate in the meantime
Mitigation

Upgrade memcached to a patched version (1.2.5 or later) that properly validates length attributes and prevents integer overflow conditions.

Recommended fix Moderate confidence

memcached 1.2.3 or later (1.4 series recommended for production)

  1. 1. Identify the exact memcached version currently running using: memcached -h or checking the package manager
  2. 2. Stop the memcached service: systemctl stop memcached or service memcached stop
  3. 3. For Debian-based systems, update package lists: apt-get update
  4. 4. Install the updated memcached package: apt-get install memcached
  5. 5. Verify the new version is installed: memcached -h | head -1
  6. 6. Start the memcached service: systemctl start memcached or service memcached start
  7. 7. Review memcached configuration in /etc/memcached.conf to ensure secure settings (disable UDP if not needed, bind to localhost)
Caveat Minor - ensure any custom startup scripts or monitoring for memcached are compatible with the new version

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

Fix this in Memcached Scoped from the published advisory
  • Consultation2.0 h
  • Implementation3.0 h
  • Testing2.0 h
  • Review / QA1.0 h
8.0 hours of engineering $1,420
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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-2009-2415 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