WiresharkApplication
CVE-2015-0563
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 · uneditedepan/dissectors/packet-smtp.c in the SMTP dissector in Wireshark 1.10.x before 1.10.12 and 1.12.x before 1.12.3 uses an incorrect length value for certain string-append operations, which allows remote attackers to cause a denial of service (application crash) via a crafted packet.
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 confidenceWireshark's SMTP dissector (packet-smtp.c) in versions 1.10.x before 1.10.12 and 1.12.x before 1.12.3 contains an incorrect length value calculation used in string-append operations. When processing a specially crafted SMTP packet, this causes a buffer handling error leading to application crash (denial of service).
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
WiresharkApplication
= 1.10.0= 1.10.1= 1.10.2= 1.10.3= 1.10.4= 1.10.5= 1.10.6= 1.10.7= 1.10.8= 1.10.9= 1.10.10= 1.10.11= 13.1= 13.2CVSS 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
- None
- Integrity
- None
- Availability
- Partial
AV:N/AC:L/Au:N/C:N/I:N/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 checksWork through these to decide whether this CVE applies to you.
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Check installed Wireshark versionRun 'wireshark --version' or 'tshark --version' from command line to obtain the exact version number of your Wireshark installationAffected if Version is 1.10.0 through 1.10.11, or 1.12.0 through 1.12.2 (versions before the 1.10.12 and 1.12.3 fixes)
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Confirm SMTP dissector is availableVerify that the SMTP dissector (packet-smtp.c) is present in your Wireshark installation - typically found in the plugins or dissectors directoryAffected if The SMTP dissector module exists in your installation (prerequisite for being vulnerable)
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Determine if SMTP traffic is being dissectedReview your capture files or live capture settings to see if SMTP protocol analysis is enabled or if you are processing SMTP trafficAffected if You are actively dissecting or loading SMTP packets (this is the attack vector)
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Check for recent Wireshark crashesReview Wireshark dumpcap or wireshark crash logs for any unexplained application crashes, particularly when processing network captures containing SMTP trafficAffected if Wireshark crashes occur specifically when opening capture files with SMTP traffic
Your environment is affected if you are running Wireshark versions 1.10.0-1.10.11 or 1.12.0-1.12.2 and actively using the SMTP dissector to process traffic.
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.
From vendor dataUpgrade Wireshark to version 1.10.12, 1.12.3, or later which contain the corrected length value handling in the SMTP dissector.
Fix this in Wireshark
Scoped from the published advisory
- Consultation2.0 h
- Implementation2.0 h
- Testing3.0 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 $2,224.
Scan for this in your stack
Free · runs locallyCheck whether your project pulls in CVE-2015-0563 — 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-2015-0563 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
- No weaponised exploit code, or anything meant to cause harm
- No spam, self-promotion, credentials, or personal data