WorkstationApplication · VMware
CVE-2018-6982
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 · uneditedVMware ESXi 6.7 without ESXi670-201811401-BG and VMware ESXi 6.5 without ESXi650-201811301-BG contain uninitialized stack memory usage in the vmxnet3 virtual network adapter which may lead to an information leak from host to guest.
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 confidenceVMware ESXi 6.5 and 6.7 contain uninitialized stack memory in the vmxnet3 virtual network adapter driver that is transmitted to guest virtual machines, potentially exposing sensitive host memory contents to the guest.
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
WorkstationApplication
>= 14.0.0, < 14.1.4= 15.0.0
FusionApplication
>= 10.0.0, < 10.1.4= 11.0.0
EsxiOperating system
= 6.0= 6.5= 6.7CVSS 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
- Low
- Privileges
- Low
- User interaction
- None
- Scope
- Changed
- Confidentiality
- High
- Integrity
- None
- Availability
- None
CVSS:3.1/AV:L/AC:L/PR:L/UI:N/S:C/C:H/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 checksWork through these to decide whether this CVE applies to you.
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Identify the installed VMware product and versionRun 'vmware -v' for Workstation/Fusion, or check ESXi host via 'vmware -v' in ESXi shell or via vSphere Client host summaryAffected if The product is VMware ESXi 6.0, 6.5, or 6.7; or VMware Workstation 14.0.0 through 14.1.3, or 15.0.0; or VMware Fusion 10.0.0 through 10.1.3, or 11.0.0
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Verify the ESXi host build numberRun 'esxcli system version get' on the ESXi host or view via vSphere Client host summary under 'Hardware -> BIOS Version'Affected if Build numbers correspond to unpatched ESXi 6.5 or 6.7 releases (for ESXi 6.5 check build before 2018-11-30 patch; for ESXi 6.7 check build before 2018-11-14 patch)
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Identify VMs using vmxnet3 virtual network adapterFor ESXi: run 'esxcli network vm list' then 'esxcli network vm port list -w <world_id>' or inspect VM configuration for 'ethernetX.virtualDev = vmxnet3'. For Workstation/Fusion: inspect VM settings for network adapter typeAffected if Any virtual machine is configured to use the vmxnet3 network adapter, as this is the vulnerable driver
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Confirm whether unpatched vmxnet3 is actively transmittingMonitor network traffic from the affected guest VM or check VM logs for vmxnet3 driver load messages. No specific command needed - the condition is simply having vmxnet3 enabledAffected if The vmxnet3 adapter is present and active in any guest VM on the affected host
You are affected if your ESXi version is 6.0, 6.5, or 6.7 (or Workstation/Fusion versions in the affected ranges) AND any guest VM is configured to use the vmxnet3 virtual network adapter.
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 data10.1.414.1.4
Apply the vendor-supplied patches (ESXi650-201811301-BG for v6.5, ESXi670-201811401-BG for v6.7) to the affected ESXi hosts to remediate the information disclosure vulnerability in the vmxnet3 driver.
Fix this in Workstation
Scoped from the published advisory
- Consultation3.0 h
- Implementation6.0 h
- Testing3.0 h
- Review / QA2.0 h
An estimate, not a bill — we confirm scope with you before any work starts. Need it this week? Rush from $3,984.
Scan for this in your stack
Free · runs locallyCheck whether your project pulls in CVE-2018-6982 — 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-2018-6982 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
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