CVE-2017-2895
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 · uneditedAn exploitable arbitrary memory read vulnerability exists in the MQTT packet parsing functionality of Cesanta Mongoose 6.8. A specially crafted MQTT SUBSCRIBE packet can cause an arbitrary out-of-bounds memory read potentially resulting in information disclosure and denial of service. An attacker needs to send a specially crafted MQTT packet over the network to trigger this vulnerability.
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 confidenceA bounds-checking vulnerability exists in Cesanta Mongoose 6.8's MQTT SUBSCRIBE packet parser. Specially crafted packets with manipulated length fields or topic filters can cause the parser to read memory beyond allocated buffers, leading to information disclosure (exposing sensitive heap/stack contents) and potential denial of service via crash.
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= 6.8CVSS 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
- Low
- Integrity
- None
- Availability
- High
CVSS:3.1/AV:N/AC:L/PR:N/UI:N/S:U/C:L/I:N/A:H
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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Identify Cesanta Mongoose installationLocate the binary or library file that implements Cesanta Mongoose in your environment. Check its version information using commands like 'strings', 'file', or version lookup methods specific to your deployment. If source code is available, check the version define or changelog.Affected if The installed version is exactly 6.8
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Confirm MQTT protocol support is enabledExamine the configuration or build settings of your application that uses Cesanta Mongoose. Look for MQTT-related compile-time flags, runtime configuration options, or module settings that enable MQTT functionality.Affected if MQTT support is compiled in or enabled at runtime
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Verify MQTT SUBSCRIBE handler is activeInspect your application's runtime configuration or network bindings to determine if the MQTT SUBSCRIBE packet handler is actively processing requests. Check for listening ports or configured MQTT topics that accept subscription requests.Affected if MQTT SUBSCRIBE processing is active and accepting packets
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Check for unusual MQTT traffic patternsMonitor network traffic or application logs for MQTT packets, particularly SUBSCRIBE packets. Look for any malformed packets, unexpected length values, or packets that may contain manipulated topic filters.Affected if MQTT SUBSCRIBE packets are being processed by the affected version
You are affected if Cesanta Mongoose version 6.8 is deployed AND MQTT SUBSCRIBE functionality is enabled and processing packets.
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 dataUpdate Cesanta Mongoose to a version that includes the fix for this vulnerability. If updates are not immediately possible, implement network-level filtering to validate MQTT packet structure before forwarding to the affected service, or disable MQTT SUBSCRIBE functionality if not required.
- Consultation2.0 h
- Implementation4.0 h
- Testing6.0 h
- Review / QA3.0 h
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Scan for this in your stack
Free · runs locallyCheck whether your project pulls in CVE-2017-2895 — 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-2017-2895 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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- Version or environment caveats, and links to real fixes
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