CVE-2003-0356: Multiple off-by-one vulnerabilities in Ethereal 0.9.11 and earlier allow remote attackers to cause a denial of

Q: How do I fix CVE-2003-0356?

ethereal: upgrade to 0.9.12. Exact commands for each OS are on this page.

Q: Is CVE-2003-0356 being exploited?

CVE-2003-0356 is not on the CISA Known Exploited Vulnerabilities list at the time of the last update. Check again, as this can change.

Q: What does CVE-2003-0356 affect?

CVE-2003-0356 affects ethereal. Severity is critical (CVSS 9.8). Multiple off-by-one vulnerabilities in Ethereal 0.9.11 and earlier allow remote attackers to cause a denial of service and possibly execute arbitrary code via the (1) AIM, (2) GIOP Gryphon, (3) OSPF, (4) PPTP, (5) Quake, (6) Quake2, (7) Qua

Q: How urgent is CVE-2003-0356?

Priority 63/100. Critical severity; EPSS top 5%: very likely to be exploited; Remotely exploitable, no login, no user action

This week

CRITICAL 9.8REMOTEUPGRADE

CVE-2003-0356 is a critical-severity flaw (CVSS 9.8) affecting ethereal. Below: why it ranks where it does, which versions are affected, what to do, and the exact commands.

Multiple off-by-one vulnerabilities in Ethereal 0.9.11 and earlier allow remote attackers to cause a denial of service and possibly execute arbitrary code via the (1) AIM, (2) GIOP Gryphon, (3) OSPF, (4) PPTP, (5) Quake, (6) Quake2, (7) Quake3, (8) Rsync, (9) SMB, (10) SMPP, and (11) TSP dissectors, which do not properly use the tvb_get_nstringz and tvb_get_nstringz0 functions.

Why this priority

Critical severity
EPSS top 5%: very likely to be exploited
Remotely exploitable, no login, no user action

A fixed release or distro patch exists.

Risk facts

CVSS score	9.8 (Critical)
Attack vector	Network (remote)
Attack complexity	Low
Privileges needed	None
User interaction	None
EPSS exploit chance	9.6% (top 5%)
CISA exploited list	No
Weakness	CWE-193
Published	2003-06-09
Last modified	2026-06-16

Publisher (CNA): MITRE · Vendor: ethereal

Last updated 2026-06-16 · Sources: CVE Program, NVD, CISA KEV, EPSS and vendor advisories · How we score

Am I affected?

Timeline

2003-06-09 04:00 UTCPublished CVE record published
2026-06-16 22:02 UTCUpdated Record last modified

ethereal ethereal UPGRADE

Affected: < 0.9.12

Fixed in: 0.9.12

Safe to downgrade to: no unaffected older release

1. Check installed version

apt-cache policy ethereal || rpm -q ethereal || ethereal --version

2. UPGRADE to 0.9.12 (Debian / Ubuntu)

sudo apt update && sudo apt install --only-upgrade ethereal

2. UPGRADE (RHEL / Amazon Linux / Fedora)

sudo dnf upgrade ethereal

Note

Distros often backport fixes without changing the version number. Confirm with the distro advisory or changelog.

Verify at the official source NVD · CVE Program · Report a problem with this page
Scores and fixes here are computed automatically from those and other public sources. Confirm with the vendor advisory before changing production systems.

Quick answers

How do I fix CVE-2003-0356?

ethereal: upgrade to 0.9.12. Exact commands for each OS are on this page.

Is CVE-2003-0356 being exploited?

CVE-2003-0356 is not on the CISA Known Exploited Vulnerabilities list at the time of the last update. Check again, as this can change.

What does CVE-2003-0356 affect?

CVE-2003-0356 affects ethereal. Severity is critical (CVSS 9.8). Multiple off-by-one vulnerabilities in Ethereal 0.9.11 and earlier allow remote attackers to cause a denial of service and possibly execute arbitrary code via the (1) AIM, (2) GIOP Gryphon, (3) OSPF, (4) PPTP, (5) Quake, (6) Quake2, (7) Qua

How urgent is CVE-2003-0356?

Priority 63/100. Critical severity; EPSS top 5%: very likely to be exploited; Remotely exploitable, no login, no user action

Related CVEs

CVE-2010-1455 MEDIUM 4.3 DOWNGRADE DOWNGRADE The DOCSIS dissector in Wireshark 0.9.6 through 1.0.12 and 1.2.0 through 1.2.7 allows user-assisted remote att
CVE-2007-6121 MEDIUM 5.0 DOWNGRADE DOWNGRADE Wireshark (formerly Ethereal) 0.8.16 to 0.99.6 allows remote attackers to cause a denial of service (crash) vi
CVE-2007-6120 MEDIUM 5.0 DOWNGRADE DOWNGRADE The Bluetooth SDP dissector Wireshark (formerly Ethereal) 0.99.2 to 0.99.6 allows remote attackers to cause a
CVE-2007-6118 HIGH 7.8 DOWNGRADE DOWNGRADE The MEGACO dissector in Wireshark (formerly Ethereal) 0.9.14 to 0.99.6 allows remote attackers to cause a deni
CVE-2007-6111 HIGH 7.1 DOWNGRADE DOWNGRADE Multiple unspecified vulnerabilities in Wireshark (formerly Ethereal) allow remote attackers to cause a denial

References

← Back to latest CVEs