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TcpdumpApplication

CVE-2017-5342

CRITICAL · 9.8 CVSS v3.0 Published 2017-01-28
Fix available
A fix is available. Upgrade to after 4.8.1 or later.
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
In tcpdump before 4.9.0, a bug in multiple protocol parsers (Geneve, GRE, NSH, OTV, VXLAN and VXLAN GPE) could cause a buffer overflow in print-ether.c:ether_print().

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

A buffer overflow vulnerability exists in tcpdump versions prior to 4.9.0 within the ether_print() function in print-ether.c. The flaw is triggered by bugs in multiple protocol parsers (Geneve, GRE, NSH, OTV, VXLAN, and VXLAN GPE) that can cause improper buffer handling when processing network packets, potentially allowing remote code execution or denial of service.

MitigationUpgrade tcpdump to version 4.9.0 or later to patch the buffer overflow vulnerability in the affected protocol parsers. If immediate patching is not possible, restrict access to untrusted networks and disable packet capture for the affected protocols as a compensating control.

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
TcpdumpApplication
Affected:<= 4.8.1

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
Privileges
None
User interaction
None
Scope
Unchanged
Confidentiality
High
Integrity
High
Availability
High

CVSS:3.0/AV:N/AC:L/PR:N/UI:N/S:U/C:H/I:H/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 checks

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

  1. Verify tcpdump is installed
    Run 'which tcpdump' on Linux/Unix or check Programs and Features on Windows
    Affected if tcpdump is not found on the system, the vulnerability does not apply
  2. Determine installed tcpdump version
    Run 'tcpdump --version' or 'tcpdump -h' to display version information
    Affected if The version displayed is 4.8.1 or earlier; versions 4.9.0 and later are patched
  3. Check for active tcpdump packet capture processes
    Run 'ps aux | grep tcpdump' or check running services that invoke tcpdump to capture network traffic
    Affected if tcpdump is actively running and processing packets from network interfaces, especially on untrusted or external networks
  4. Identify if vulnerable protocol parsers are in use
    Review tcpdump command-line arguments or capture scripts for presence of Geneve, GRE, NSH, OTV, VXLAN, or VXLAN GPE protocol filtering or decode options
    Affected if tcpdump is being used to decode or filter any of the affected protocols (Geneve, GRE, NSH, OTV, VXLAN, VXLAN GPE) on live traffic

You are affected if tcpdump version 4.8.1 or earlier is installed AND actively processing network packets, particularly those containing Geneve, GRE, NSH, OTV, VXLAN, or VXLAN GPE protocols.

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
Upgrade available Upgrade to a release after 4.8.1
Interim mitigation

Upgrade tcpdump to version 4.9.0 or later to patch the buffer overflow vulnerability in the affected protocol parsers. If immediate patching is not possible, restrict access to untrusted networks and disable packet capture for the affected protocols as a compensating control.

Recommended fix High confidence

tcpdump 4.9.0 or later

  1. 1. Identify the current tcpdump version by running: tcpdump --version or dpkg -l | grep tcpdump (Debian) / rpm -qa | grep tcpdump (RHEL)
  2. 2. Update package repository metadata: sudo apt-get update (Debian) or sudo yum check-update (RHEL)
  3. 3. Upgrade tcpdump to version 4.9.0 or later: sudo apt-get install tcpdump (Debian) or sudo yum update tcpdump (RHEL)
  4. 4. Verify the upgrade was successful by checking the new version: tcpdump --version
  5. 5. Test that tcpdump functions normally with your typical capture workflows
Caveat Point upgrades typically have minimal breaking changes; however, verify any custom dissector or capture scripts still function after upgrade

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

Fix this in Tcpdump Scoped from the published advisory
  • Consultation2.0 h
  • Implementation3.0 h
  • Testing3.0 h
  • Review / QA2.0 h
10.0 hours of engineering $1,750
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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-2017-5342 in production — separate from our analysis above.

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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