CVE-2019-8960: A Denial of Service vulnerability related to command handling has been identified in FlexNet Publisher lmadmin

This month

HIGH 7.5REMOTEDOWNGRADE

CVE-2019-8960 is a high-severity flaw (CVSS 7.5) affecting flexnet publisher. Below: why it ranks where it does, which versions are affected, what to do, and the exact commands.

A Denial of Service vulnerability related to command handling has been identified in FlexNet Publisher lmadmin.exe version 11.16.2. The message reading function used in lmadmin.exe can, given a certain message, call itself again and then wait for a further message. With a particular flag set in the original message, but no second message received, the function eventually return an unexpected value which leads to an exception being thrown. The end

Why this priority

High severity
Remotely exploitable, no login, no user action

No fix is published yet: follow the downgrade or mitigation steps.

Risk facts

CVSS score	7.5 (High)
Attack vector	Network (remote)
Attack complexity	Low
Privileges needed	None
User interaction	None
EPSS exploit chance	1.3% (top 29%)
CISA exploited list	No
Weakness	CWE-754
Published	2020-04-21
Last modified	2026-06-17

Publisher (CNA): Flexera Software LLC · Vendor: flexera

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

Am I affected?

Timeline

2020-04-21 15:15 UTCPublished CVE record published
2026-06-17 02:42 UTCUpdated Record last modified

flexera flexnet publisher DOWNGRADE

Affected: 11.16.2

Fixed in: no fixed release known

Safe to downgrade to: a release before 11.16.2

1. Check installed version

apt-cache policy flexnet-publisher || rpm -q flexnet-publisher || flexnet-publisher --version

2. No fixed release: DOWNGRADE to a release before 11.16.2 (Debian / Ubuntu)

apt-cache madison flexnet-publisher sudo apt install flexnet-publisher=<VERSION_BEFORE_11.16.2> sudo apt-mark hold flexnet-publisher

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

dnf --showduplicates list flexnet-publisher sudo dnf downgrade flexnet-publisher-<VERSION_BEFORE_11.16.2> sudo dnf versionlock add flexnet-publisher

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.

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-2019-8960?

flexnet publisher: downgrade or apply the listed mitigation. Exact commands for each OS are on this page.

Is CVE-2019-8960 being exploited?

CVE-2019-8960 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-2019-8960 affect?

CVE-2019-8960 affects flexnet publisher. Severity is high (CVSS 7.5). A Denial of Service vulnerability related to command handling has been identified in FlexNet Publisher lmadmin.exe version 11.16.2. The message reading function used in lmadmin.exe can, given a certain message, call itself again and then wa

How urgent is CVE-2019-8960?

Priority 49/100. High severity; Remotely exploitable, no login, no user action

Related CVEs

CVE-2020-12081 HIGH 7.5 DOWNGRADE An information disclosure vulnerability has been identified in FlexNet Publisher lmadmin.exe 11.14.0.2
CVE-2020-12080 HIGH 7.5 DOWNGRADE A Denial of Service vulnerability has been identified in FlexNet Publisher's lmadmin.exe version 11.16.6
CVE-2019-8963 HIGH 7.5 DOWNGRADE A Denial of Service (DoS) vulnerability was discovered in FlexNet Publisher's lmadmin 11.16.5, when doing a cr
CVE-2019-8961 HIGH 7.5 DOWNGRADE A Denial of Service vulnerability related to stack exhaustion has been identified in FlexNet Publisher lmadmin
CVE-2018-20034 HIGH 7.5 UPGRADE UPGRADE A Denial of Service vulnerability related to adding an item to a list in lmgrd and vendor daemon components of

References

← Back to latest CVEs