CVE-2019-15548: An issue was discovered in the ncurses crate through 5.99.0 for Rust

Q: How do I fix CVE-2019-15548?

ncurses: upgrade to newer than 5.99.0. Exact commands for each OS are on this page.

Q: Is CVE-2019-15548 being exploited?

CVE-2019-15548 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-2019-15548 affect?

CVE-2019-15548 affects ncurses. Severity is critical (CVSS 9.8). An issue was discovered in the ncurses crate through 5.99.0 for Rust. There are instr and mvwinstr buffer overflows because interaction with C functions is mishandled.

Q: How urgent is CVE-2019-15548?

Priority 58/100. Critical severity; Remotely exploitable, no login, no user action

This month

CRITICAL 9.8REMOTEUPGRADE

CVE-2019-15548 is a critical-severity flaw (CVSS 9.8) affecting ncurses. Below: why it ranks where it does, which versions are affected, what to do, and the exact commands.

An issue was discovered in the ncurses crate through 5.99.0 for Rust. There are instr and mvwinstr buffer overflows because interaction with C functions is mishandled.

Why this priority

Critical severity
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	1.6% (top 24%)
CISA exploited list	No
Weakness	CWE-119
Published	2019-08-26
Last modified	2026-06-17

Publisher (CNA): MITRE · Vendor: ncurses project

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

Am I affected?

Timeline

2019-08-26 18:15 UTCPublished CVE record published
2026-06-17 02:20 UTCUpdated Record last modified

ncurses project ncurses UPGRADE

Affected: <= 5.99.0

Fixed in: newer than 5.99.0

Safe to downgrade to: no unaffected older release

1. Check installed version

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

2. UPGRADE to newer than 5.99.0 (Debian / Ubuntu)

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

2. UPGRADE (RHEL / Amazon Linux / Fedora)

sudo dnf upgrade ncurses

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-2019-15548?

ncurses: upgrade to newer than 5.99.0. Exact commands for each OS are on this page.

Is CVE-2019-15548 being exploited?

CVE-2019-15548 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-2019-15548 affect?

CVE-2019-15548 affects ncurses. Severity is critical (CVSS 9.8). An issue was discovered in the ncurses crate through 5.99.0 for Rust. There are instr and mvwinstr buffer overflows because interaction with C functions is mishandled.

How urgent is CVE-2019-15548?

Priority 58/100. Critical severity; Remotely exploitable, no login, no user action

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References

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