CVE-2018-10873: A vulnerability was discovered in SPICE before version 0.14.1 where the generated code used for demarshalling

This month

HIGH 8.3WATCHLISTUPGRADEMITIGATEMITIGATE

CVE-2018-10873 is a high-severity flaw (CVSS 8.3) affecting spice, debian linux, ubuntu linux. Below: why it ranks where it does, which versions are affected, what to do, and the exact commands.

A vulnerability was discovered in SPICE before version 0.14.1 where the generated code used for demarshalling messages lacked sufficient bounds checks. A malicious client or server, after authentication, could send specially crafted messages to its peer which would result in a crash or, potentially, other impacts.

Why this priority

High severity
EPSS top 10%: very likely to be exploited
On your watchlist

A fixed release or distro patch exists.

Risk facts

CVSS score	8.3 (High)
Attack vector	Network (remote)
Attack complexity	Low
Privileges needed	Low
User interaction	None
EPSS exploit chance	3.9% (top 10%)
CISA exploited list	No
Weakness	CWE-119, CWE-20
Published	2018-08-17
Last modified	2026-06-17

Publisher (CNA): Red Hat, Inc. · Vendor: canonical · debian · redhat · spice project

Last updated 2026-06-17 · Sources: CVE Program, NVD, CISA KEV, EPSS and vendor advisories · How we score

Am I affected?

Timeline

2018-08-17 12:29 UTCPublished CVE record published
2026-06-17 01:34 UTCUpdated Record last modified

spice project spice UPGRADE

Affected: < 0.14.1

Fixed in: 0.14.1

Safe to downgrade to: no unaffected older release

1. Check installed version

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

2. UPGRADE to 0.14.1 (Debian / Ubuntu)

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

2. UPGRADE (RHEL / Amazon Linux / Fedora)

sudo dnf upgrade spice

Note

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

debian debian linux MITIGATE

Affected: 8.0 · 9.0

Fixed in: no fixed release known

Safe to downgrade to: a release before 8.0

Check your OS release

cat /etc/os-release; uname -r

Debian / Ubuntu

sudo apt update && sudo apt full-upgrade

RHEL / Amazon Linux / Fedora

sudo dnf upgrade --refresh

Windows

Install the latest cumulative update from Windows Update

If no patch exists yet

OS downgrades are not safe. Apply the vendor mitigation from the advisory and restrict exposure.

canonical ubuntu linux MITIGATE

Affected: 14.04 · 16.04 · 18.04

Fixed in: no fixed release known

Safe to downgrade to: a release before 14.04

Check your OS release

cat /etc/os-release; uname -r

Debian / Ubuntu

sudo apt update && sudo apt full-upgrade

RHEL / Amazon Linux / Fedora

sudo dnf upgrade --refresh

Windows

Install the latest cumulative update from Windows Update

If no patch exists yet

OS downgrades are not safe. Apply the vendor mitigation from the advisory and restrict exposure.

redhat virtualization DOWNGRADE

Affected: 4.0

Fixed in: no fixed release known

Safe to downgrade to: a release before 4.0

1. Check installed version

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

2. No fixed release: DOWNGRADE to a release before 4.0 (Debian / Ubuntu)

apt-cache madison virtualization sudo apt install virtualization=<VERSION_BEFORE_4.0> sudo apt-mark hold virtualization

2. No fixed release: DOWNGRADE (RHEL / Amazon Linux / Fedora)

dnf --showduplicates list virtualization sudo dnf downgrade virtualization-<VERSION_BEFORE_4.0> sudo dnf versionlock add virtualization

Downgrade risk

Downgrading can break dependent software and may reopen older bugs. Read the distro advisory first and test on a non-production host.

After downgrade

Restart the service, and keep the package held until a fixed release ships.

redhat virtualization host DOWNGRADE

Affected: 4.0

Fixed in: no fixed release known

Safe to downgrade to: a release before 4.0

1. Check installed version

apt-cache policy virtualization-host || rpm -q virtualization-host || virtualization-host --version

2. No fixed release: DOWNGRADE to a release before 4.0 (Debian / Ubuntu)

apt-cache madison virtualization-host sudo apt install virtualization-host=<VERSION_BEFORE_4.0> sudo apt-mark hold virtualization-host

2. No fixed release: DOWNGRADE (RHEL / Amazon Linux / Fedora)

dnf --showduplicates list virtualization-host sudo dnf downgrade virtualization-host-<VERSION_BEFORE_4.0> sudo dnf versionlock add virtualization-host

Downgrade risk

Downgrading can break dependent software and may reopen older bugs. Read the distro advisory first and test on a non-production host.

After downgrade

Restart the service, and keep the package held until a fixed release ships.

redhat enterprise linux desktop MITIGATE

Affected: 6.0 · 7.0

Fixed in: no fixed release known

Safe to downgrade to: a release before 6.0

Check your OS release

cat /etc/os-release; uname -r

Debian / Ubuntu

sudo apt update && sudo apt full-upgrade

RHEL / Amazon Linux / Fedora

sudo dnf upgrade --refresh

Windows

Install the latest cumulative update from Windows Update

If no patch exists yet

OS downgrades are not safe. Apply the vendor mitigation from the advisory and restrict exposure.

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-2018-10873?

spice: upgrade to 0.14.1; debian linux: mitigate or apply the listed mitigation; ubuntu linux: mitigate or apply the listed mitigation. Exact commands for each OS are on this page.

Is CVE-2018-10873 being exploited?

CVE-2018-10873 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-2018-10873 affect?

CVE-2018-10873 affects spice, debian linux, ubuntu linux. Severity is high (CVSS 8.3). A vulnerability was discovered in SPICE before version 0.14.1 where the generated code used for demarshalling messages lacked sufficient bounds checks. A malicious client or server, after authentication, could send specially crafted message

How urgent is CVE-2018-10873?

Priority 57/100. High severity; EPSS top 10%: very likely to be exploited; On your watchlist

Software pages

Ubuntu vulnerabilities · Debian vulnerabilities

Related CVEs

CVE-2021-20201 MEDIUM 5.3 UPGRADE MITIGATE A flaw was found in spice in versions before 0.14.92
CVE-2020-14355 MEDIUM 6.6 UPGRADE DOWNGRADE Multiple buffer overflow vulnerabilities were found in the QUIC image decoding process of the SPICE remote dis
CVE-2019-3813 HIGH 7.5 UPGRADE MITIGATE Spice, versions 0.5.2 through 0.14.1, are vulnerable to an out-of-bounds read due to an off-by-one error in me
CVE-2018-10893 HIGH 7.6 MITIGATE Multiple integer overflow and buffer overflow issues were discovered in spice-client's handling of LZ compress
CVE-2017-7506 HIGH 8.8 DOWNGRADE spice versions though 0.13 are vulnerable to out-of-bounds memory access when processing specially crafted mes

References

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