CVE-2010-4345
Exim 4.72 and earlier allows local users to gain privileges by leveraging the ability of the exim user account to specify an alternate configuration file with a directive that contains arbitrary commands, as demonstrated by the spool_directory directive.
Key facts
- CVSS score
- 7.8 (v3.1)
- Severity
- HIGH
- CVSS vector
CVSS:3.1/AV:L/AC:L/PR:L/UI:N/S:U/C:H/I:H/A:H- Weakness (CWE)
- CWE-77
- EPSS score
- 18.0% (97th percentile)
- In CISA KEV
- Yes, added March 25, 2022
- In EU EUVD
- Yes (EUVD-2010-4314)
- Published
- December 14, 2010
- NVD last modified
- June 16, 2026
- Status
- Analyzed
CISA Known Exploited Vulnerability
Exim Privilege Escalation Vulnerability
Added to the KEV catalog on March 25, 2022; federal remediation due April 15, 2022.
EU Vulnerability Database (EUVD)
This vulnerability is also tracked by ENISA as EUVD-2010-4314 in the EU Vulnerability Database. ENISA flags it as known exploited. Last updated in EUVD on October 22, 2025.
View on the EU Vulnerability DatabaseAffected products
- canonical / ubuntu linux
- canonical / ubuntu linux
- canonical / ubuntu linux
- canonical / ubuntu linux
- canonical / ubuntu linux
- debian / debian linux
- exim / exim
- opensuse / opensuse
- opensuse / opensuse
- opensuse / opensuse
References
- http://bugs.exim.org/show_bug.cgi?id=1044(Issue Tracking, Patch)
- http://lists.exim.org/lurker/message/20101209.172233.abcba158.en.html(Mailing List, Patch)
- http://lists.exim.org/lurker/message/20101210.164935.385e04d0.en.html(Mailing List)
- http://lists.opensuse.org/opensuse-security-announce/2010-12/msg00003.html(Mailing List, Third Party Advisory)
- http://openwall.com/lists/oss-security/2010/12/10/1(Mailing List)
- http://secunia.com/advisories/42576(Broken Link, Vendor Advisory)
- http://secunia.com/advisories/42930(Broken Link)
- http://secunia.com/advisories/43128(Broken Link)
- http://secunia.com/advisories/43243(Broken Link)
- http://www.cpanel.net/2010/12/critical-exim-security-update.html(Broken Link)
- http://www.debian.org/security/2010/dsa-2131(Mailing List, Third Party Advisory)
- http://www.debian.org/security/2011/dsa-2154(Mailing List, Third Party Advisory)
- http://www.exim.org/lurker/message/20101207.215955.bb32d4f2.en.html(Mailing List, Vendor Advisory)
- http://www.kb.cert.org/vuls/id/758489(Third Party Advisory, US Government Resource)
- http://www.metasploit.com/modules/exploit/unix/smtp/exim4_string_format(Third Party Advisory)
- http://www.openwall.com/lists/oss-security/2021/05/04/7(Mailing List)
- http://www.redhat.com/support/errata/RHSA-2011-0153.html(Broken Link)
- http://www.securityfocus.com/archive/1/515172/100/0/threaded(Broken Link, Third Party Advisory, VDB Entry)
- http://www.securityfocus.com/bid/45341(Broken Link, Third Party Advisory, VDB Entry)
- http://www.securitytracker.com/id?1024859(Broken Link, Third Party Advisory, VDB Entry)
- http://www.theregister.co.uk/2010/12/11/exim_code_execution_peril/(Press/Media Coverage, Third Party Advisory)
- http://www.ubuntu.com/usn/USN-1060-1(Third Party Advisory)
- http://www.vupen.com/english/advisories/2010/3171(Broken Link, Vendor Advisory)
- http://www.vupen.com/english/advisories/2010/3204(Broken Link, Vendor Advisory)
- http://www.vupen.com/english/advisories/2011/0135(Broken Link)
- http://www.vupen.com/english/advisories/2011/0245(Broken Link)
- http://www.vupen.com/english/advisories/2011/0364(Broken Link)
- https://bugzilla.redhat.com/show_bug.cgi?id=662012(Issue Tracking, Patch)
- https://www.cisa.gov/known-exploited-vulnerabilities-catalog?field_cve=CVE-2010-4345(US Government Resource)
Last updated September 17, 2026 · Source: NVD, CISA KEV, FIRST.org EPSS
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