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WorkstationApplication · VMware

CVE-2018-6983

HIGH · 8.8 CVSS v3.0 Published 2018-11-27
Fix available
A fix is available. Upgrade to 10.1.5 / 11.0.2 or later.
See remediation →
90/100
Remediation priority · Urgent
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
VMware Workstation (15.x before 15.0.2 and 14.x before 14.1.5) and Fusion (11.x before 11.0.2 and 10.x before 10.1.5) contain an integer overflow vulnerability in the virtual network devices. This issue may allow a guest to execute code on the host.

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

Integer overflow vulnerability in the virtual network devices of VMware Workstation (15.x before 15.0.2 and 14.x before 14.1.5) and Fusion (11.x before 11.0.2 and 10.x before 10.1.5). This VM escape vulnerability allows a guest virtual machine to execute arbitrary code on the host operating system.

MitigationApply vendor-supplied patches: upgrade VMware Workstation to 15.0.2/14.1.5 or later, and Fusion to 11.0.2/10.1.5 or later. Prioritize patching given the VM escape nature enabling host code execution.

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
Affected:>= 14.0.0, < 14.1.5>= 15.0.0, < 15.0.2
FusionApplication
Affected:>= 10.0.0, < 10.1.5>= 11.0.0, < 11.0.2

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
Low
Privileges
Low
User interaction
None
Scope
Changed
Confidentiality
High
Integrity
High
Availability
High

CVSS:3.0/AV:L/AC:L/PR:L/UI:N/S:C/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. Identify VMware product and version
    On Windows/Linux Workstation: open Help > About VMware Workstation. On macOS Fusion: open Fusion menu > About Fusion. Note the exact version number displayed.
    Affected if Version is 14.0.0 through 14.1.4, 15.0.0 through 15.0.1 for Workstation; or 10.0.0 through 10.1.4, 11.0.0 through 11.0.1 for Fusion.
  2. Confirm virtual network adapters exist
    On Windows: open Device Manager, expand Network Adapters, look for 'VMware' adapters such as 'VMware Network Adapter VMnet1' and 'VMware Network Adapter VMnet8'. On macOS: run 'ifconfig' in Terminal and look for 'vmnet' interfaces.
    Affected if One or more VMware virtual network adapters are present on the system.
  3. Check if host virtual networking is active
    On Windows Workstation: open Virtual Network Editor (Edit > Virtual Network Editor), verify VMnet0, VMnet1, or VMnet8 are configured. On macOS Fusion: check /Library/Preferences/VMware Fusion/networking.conf or run 'vmrun listNetworks' if available.
    Affected if Any virtual network (NAT, bridged, or host-only) is configured and active.
  4. Verify guest has network access
    Start any virtual machine, open its network settings (VM > Settings > Network Adapter), confirm 'Connected' is checked and a network type is selected.
    Affected if The guest VM has a network adapter connected to a virtual network.

You are affected if your VMware Workstation version is 14.x before 14.1.5 or 15.x before 15.0.2, or Fusion version is 10.x before 10.1.5 or 11.x before 11.0.2, AND virtual networking is configured with a guest VM having network access.

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
Upgrade available Upgrade to 10.1.5 / 11.0.2 / 14.1.5 or later
Fixed in 10.1.511.0.214.1.5
Interim mitigation

Apply vendor-supplied patches: upgrade VMware Workstation to 15.0.2/14.1.5 or later, and Fusion to 11.0.2/10.1.5 or later. Prioritize patching given the VM escape nature enabling host code execution.

Fix this in Workstation Scoped from the published advisory
  • Consultation2.0 h
  • Implementation4.0 h
  • Testing2.0 h
  • Review / QA1.0 h
9.0 hours of engineering $1,600
Get the upgrade done

An estimate, not a bill — we confirm scope with you before any work starts. Need it this week? Rush from $2,560.

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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-2018-6983 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
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  • No spam, self-promotion, credentials, or personal data