CVE-2008-3546

Exp

Stack-based buffer overflow in the (1) diff_addremove and (2) diff_change functions in GIT before 1.5.6.4 might allow local users to execute arbitrary code via a PATH whose length is larger than the system's PATH_MAX when running GIT utilities such as git-diff or git-grep.

Published: 2008-08-07 Last update: 2026-04-23 Assigner: [email protected] Source: [email protected]

Conclusion & alert: CVE-2008-3546 is rated High Exploit Risk (73.1/100): CVSS High severity, with medium exploitation likelihood (EPSS 1.76%). Core evidence: 1 public exploit reference(s) are indexed (Exploit-DB). Mandatory action: Public exploits are available—assess exposure, apply mitigations, and prioritize patching.

Risk is dynamic; we continuously reassess and refresh what is shown on this page as upstream context changes.

Public exploit references (Exploit-DB) for CVE-2008-3546

EDB-ID Source Kind Published Link
nvd_ref exploit_tag Exploit-DB ↗

Exploit prediction scoring system (EPSS) score for CVE-2008-3546

EPSS lead: Daily EPSS estimates relative likelihood of exploitation; percentile ranks this CVE among scored vulnerabilities (higher = more severe relative rank).

# Date Old EPSS score New EPSS score Delta (New - Old)
1 2025-09-27 2.32% 1.76% -0.56%
2 2025-06-15 2.36% 2.32% -0.04%
3 2025-05-28 2.36%

Full EPSS history (9 records total)

Common vulnerability scoring system (CVSS) metrics for CVE-2008-3546

CVSS metrics for this CVE.

Base score Version Severity Vector Exploitability Impact Score source
7.5 2.0 HIGH
AV:N/AC:L/Au:N/C:P/I:P/A:P Click to expand
Access vector (AV:N)
Can be exploited remotely over network reachability.
Access complexity (AC:L)
Exploitation conditions are straightforward and predictable.
Authentication (AU:N)
No authentication is required.
Confidentiality impact (C:P)
Partial confidentiality impact.
Integrity impact (I:P)
Partial integrity impact.
Availability impact (A:P)
Partial availability impact.
10.0 6.4 [email protected]

Weakness enumeration for CVE-2008-3546

OS Trackers for CVE-2008-3546

vendor priority summary link
gentoo normal CVE-2008-3546: 1 GLSA(s) (200809-16), 1 atom(s) (dev-util/git); latest impact normal. https://bugs.gentoo.org/buglist.cgi?quicksearch=CVE-2008-3546
redhat https://access.redhat.com/security/cve/CVE-2008-3546
ubuntu low CVE-2008-3546 low priority: Ubuntu including 1 source packages (git-core), 6 status rows across 6 suites (dapper, feisty, gutsy, hardy, intrepid, upstream): released 5, ignored 1. https://ubuntu.com/security/CVE-2008-3546

Affected software / configurations for CVE-2008-3546

Vendor Product Version Raw CPE
git git 1.5.5.3 cpe:2.3:a:git:git:1.5.5.3:*:*:*:*:*:*:*
git git 1.5.5.3 cpe:2.3:a:git:git:1.5.5.3:r1:*:*:*:*:*:*
git git 1.5.5.4 cpe:2.3:a:git:git:1.5.5.4:*:*:*:*:*:*:*
git git 1.5.6.1 cpe:2.3:a:git:git:1.5.6.1:*:*:*:*:*:*:*
git git 1.5.6.2 cpe:2.3:a:git:git:1.5.6.2:*:*:*:*:*:*:*
git git 1.5.6.3 cpe:2.3:a:git:git:1.5.6.3:*:*:*:*:*:*:*

References for CVE-2008-3546

URL Tags
http://kerneltrap.org/mailarchive/git/2008/7/16/2529284 Exploit
http://secunia.com/advisories/31347 Vendor Advisory
http://secunia.com/advisories/31780
http://secunia.com/advisories/32029
http://secunia.com/advisories/32384
http://secunia.com/advisories/33964
http://security.gentoo.org/glsa/glsa-200809-16.xml
http://wiki.rpath.com/Advisories:rPSA-2008-0253
http://www.debian.org/security/2008/dsa-1637
http://www.kernel.org/pub/software/scm/git/docs/RelNotes-1.5.6.4.txt
http://www.securityfocus.com/archive/1/495391/100/0/threaded
http://www.securityfocus.com/bid/30549
http://www.securitytracker.com/id?1020627
http://www.ubuntu.com/usn/USN-723-1
http://www.vupen.com/english/advisories/2008/2306
https://exchange.xforce.ibmcloud.com/vulnerabilities/44217
https://issues.rpath.com/browse/RPL-2707
https://www.redhat.com/archives/fedora-package-announce/2008-October/msg00729.html
cvelogic Threat Intelligence