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U BootApplication · Denx

CVE-2019-14199

CRITICAL · 9.8 CVSS v3.0 Published 2019-07-31
Fix available
A fix is available. Upgrade to after 2019.07 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
An issue was discovered in Das U-Boot through 2019.07. There is an unbounded memcpy when parsing a UDP packet due to a net_process_received_packet integer underflow during an *udp_packet_handler call.

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

U-Boot contains an integer underflow vulnerability in the net_process_received_packet function when parsing UDP packets. The underflow leads to an unbounded memcpy operation in the udp_packet_handler, allowing remote attackers to corrupt memory via specially crafted UDP packets on the network interface.

MitigationUpdate U-Boot to a version after 2019.07 that contains the fix. If immediate patching is not feasible, disable network boot functionality and isolate affected devices behind controlled network segments to reduce attack surface.

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
U BootApplication
Affected:<= 2019.07

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. Identify U-Boot version
    Check the running U-Boot version by accessing the bootloader console and running 'version' or 'printenv version', or inspect the U-Boot binary/symbols for the version string
    Affected if The version is 2019.07 or earlier (e.g., 2019.07, 2019.04, 2018.x, etc.)
  2. Verify network support is compiled in
    Check U-Boot configuration for CONFIG_CMD_NET or CONFIG_NET (typically found in .config file or via 'printenv' showing net-related variables)
    Affected if Network command support (CONFIG_CMD_NET) is enabled in the U-Boot build configuration
  3. Confirm UDP/network boot is actively used
    Check U-Boot environment variables for bootp, dhcp, tftp, or nfs settings (e.g., 'printenv bootcmd' or 'printenv') that indicate network boot or UDP-based protocols
    Affected if Network boot or UDP-based protocols are configured in the boot environment (e.g., bootcmd contains 'bootp', 'dhcp', 'tftp', or 'udp')
  4. Check if device is network-accessible
    Verify the device has an active network interface and is reachable on the network where malicious UDP packets could be received
    Affected if The device with vulnerable U-Boot is connected to a network where untrusted UDP packets could be received

You are affected if your U-Boot version is 2019.07 or earlier, network support is enabled, and the device uses network boot functionality that processes incoming UDP packets.

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 2019.07
Interim mitigation

Update U-Boot to a version after 2019.07 that contains the fix. If immediate patching is not feasible, disable network boot functionality and isolate affected devices behind controlled network segments to reduce attack surface.

Recommended fix Moderate confidence

U-Boot 2019.10 or later (preferably latest stable release such as 2024.x)

  1. 1. Identify all embedded devices or systems running U-Boot version 2019.07 or earlier
  2. 2. Download the latest stable U-Boot release (2019.10 or later) from the official U-Boot repository at https://source.denx.de/u-boot/u-boot/-/releases
  3. 3. For each affected device, rebuild the U-Boot binary using the newer source code
  4. 4. Verify the build completes without errors and includes the fix for CVE-2019-14199
  5. 5. Deploy the updated U-Boot binary to each affected device following the vendor-specific flashing procedure
  6. 6. After update, verify the device boots correctly with the new U-Boot version
Caveat Upgrading U-Boot may require rebuilding custom board-specific code or drivers; ensure all device tree blobs and board configurations are compatible with the new version

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

Fix this in U Boot Scoped from the published advisory
  • Consultation3.0 h
  • Implementation6.0 h
  • Testing3.0 h
  • Review / QA2.0 h
14.0 hours of engineering $2,490
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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-2019-14199 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