dbcve.org
Enterprise Linux DesktopOperating system · Redhat

CVE-2018-12385

HIGH · 7.0 CVSS v3.0 Published 2018-10-18
Mitigation only
No fix yet — a mitigation exists. There is no fixed release. A documented workaround reduces exposure in the meantime.
See remediation →
72/100
Remediation priority · Elevated
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
A potentially exploitable crash in TransportSecurityInfo used for SSL can be triggered by data stored in the local cache in the user profile directory. This issue is only exploitable in combination with another vulnerability allowing an attacker to write data into the local cache or from locally installed malware. This issue also triggers a non-exploitable startup crash for users switching between the Nightly and Release versions of Firefox if the same profile is used. This vulnerability affects Thunderbird < 60.2.1, Firefox ESR < 60.2.1, and Firefox < 62.0.2.

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 crash vulnerability in Firefox/Thunderbird's TransportSecurityInfo (SSL/TLS handling) can be triggered by malicious data stored in the local cache within the user profile directory. Exploitation requires either another vulnerability allowing cache tampering or locally installed malware - the crash alone is not directly exploitable.

MitigationUpdate to Firefox 62.0.2+, Firefox ESR 60.2.1+, or Thunderbird 60.2.1+ to patch the vulnerability. Users should avoid reusing profiles between different Firefox release channels.

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
Enterprise Linux DesktopOperating system
Affected:= 6.0= 7.0
Enterprise Linux ServerOperating system
Affected:= 6.0= 7.0
Enterprise Linux Server AusOperating system
Affected:= 7.6
Enterprise Linux Server EusOperating system
Affected:= 7.5= 7.6
Enterprise Linux Server TusOperating system
Affected:= 7.6
Enterprise Linux WorkstationOperating system
Affected:= 6.0= 7.0
Debian LinuxOperating system
Affected:= 8.0= 9.0
Ubuntu LinuxOperating system
Affected:= 14.04= 16.04= 18.04

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
Local
Complexity
High
Privileges
Low
User interaction
None
Scope
Unchanged
Confidentiality
High
Integrity
High
Availability
High

CVSS:3.0/AV:L/AC:H/PR:L/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. Check if Firefox is installed
    Run 'firefox --version' or check for /usr/bin/firefox
    Affected if Firefox is installed and version is below 62.0.2 (or below 60.2.1 for Firefox ESR)
  2. Check if Thunderbird is installed
    Run 'thunderbird --version' or check for /usr/bin/thunderbird
    Affected if Thunderbird is installed and version is below 60.2.1
  3. Verify the exact Firefox/Thunderbird version
    Run 'firefox --version' or 'thunderbird --version' and note the full version string
    Affected if Version is 62.0.1 or earlier for Firefox, 60.2.0 or earlier for Firefox ESR, or 60.2.0 or earlier for Thunderbird
  4. Identify the user profile directory
    Look for profile folders in ~/.mozilla/firefox/ or ~/.thunderbird/
    Affected if A profile directory exists and contains cache files (such as cert8.db, key3.db, or cache2/) that could potentially hold malicious data
  5. Confirm the application was distributed with affected OS
    Cross-reference the installed browser version with the OS version from 'hostnamectl' or 'cat /etc/os-release'
    Affected if Running Red Hat EL 6/7, Debian 8/9, or Ubuntu 14.04/16.04/18.04 with an unpatched Firefox/Thunderbird version from those distributions

You are affected if Firefox version is 62.0.1 or earlier (or ESR 60.2.0 or earlier), or Thunderbird is 60.2.0 or earlier, and you have a user profile with local cache files that could contain malicious data.

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

Update to Firefox 62.0.2+, Firefox ESR 60.2.1+, or Thunderbird 60.2.1+ to patch the vulnerability. Users should avoid reusing profiles between different Firefox release channels.

Fix this in Enterprise Linux Desktop Scoped from the published advisory
  • Consultation1.0 h
  • Implementation1.0 h
  • Testing1.0 h
  • Review / QA1.0 h
4.0 hours of engineering $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-2018-12385 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