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Linux KernelOperating system · Linux

CVE-2010-4563

MEDIUM · 5.0 CVSS v2.0 Published 2012-02-02
Mitigation only
No fix yet — a mitigation exists. There is no fixed release. A documented workaround reduces exposure in the meantime.
See remediation →
59/100
Remediation priority · Elevated
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 Linux kernel, when using IPv6, allows remote attackers to determine whether a host is sniffing the network by sending an ICMPv6 Echo Request to a multicast address and determining whether an Echo Reply is sent, as demonstrated by thcping.

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 Linux kernel IPv6 stack responds to ICMPv6 Echo Requests sent to multicast addresses even when the network interface is in promiscuous mode (sniffing). Remote attackers can exploit this by sending ICMPv6 Echo Requests to multicast addresses and analyzing whether Echo Replies are returned, allowing them to determine if a target host is actively sniffing network traffic.

MitigationApply the relevant kernel patch (typically a modification to the ICMPv6 echo handling logic) or upgrade to a kernel version that addresses this issue. Network filtering at perimeter devices can also reduce attack surface.

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
Linux KernelOperating 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
Authentication
None
Confidentiality
Partial
Integrity
None
Availability
None

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

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. Check if IPv6 is enabled on the system
    Run 'ip -6 addr show' or check /proc/sys/net/ipv6/conf/*/disable_ipv6 for each interface
    Affected if IPv6 is enabled on any network interface (value is 0 in disable_ipv6)
  2. Identify kernel version
    Run 'uname -r' to get the running kernel version string
    Affected if The kernel version is any version (this CVE affects all Linux kernel versions prior to the fix)
  3. Check for interfaces in promiscuous mode
    Run 'ip link show' or 'ip -a link show' and look for 'PROMISC' in the interface flags
    Affected if Any network interface is in promiscuous mode (PROMISC flag present)
  4. Verify ICMPv6 echo response behavior to multicast
    If IPv6 is enabled and an interface is in promiscuous mode, send an ICMPv6 Echo Request to ff02::1 (link-local all-nodes) and observe if an Echo Reply is returned
    Affected if The host responds to ICMPv6 Echo Requests sent to multicast addresses even while in promiscuous sniffing mode

A host is affected if IPv6 is enabled, the kernel lacks the CVE-2010-4563 fix, and the system responds to ICMPv6 multicast echo requests while in promiscuous mode.

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

Apply the relevant kernel patch (typically a modification to the ICMPv6 echo handling logic) or upgrade to a kernel version that addresses this issue. Network filtering at perimeter devices can also reduce attack surface.

Fix this in Linux Kernel 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-2010-4563 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