CVE-2008-5078

Multiple buffer overflows in the (1) recognize_eps_file function (src/psgen.c) and (2) tilde_subst function (src/util.c) in GNU enscript 1.6.1, and possibly earlier, might allow remote attackers to execute arbitrary code via an epsf escape sequence with a long filename.

Published: 2008-12-19 Last update: 2026-06-16 Assigner: [email protected] Source: [email protected]
NVD Status：Modified，CVE State: published
View at NVD, CVE.org, EUVD

CVE-2008-5078 is rated Moderate Risk (55.4/100): CVSS Medium severity, with medium exploitation likelihood (EPSS 3.09%). Review affected assets and schedule remediation.

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

Exploit prediction scoring system (EPSS) score for CVE-2008-5078

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 2026-06-15 4.96% 3.09% -1.88%
2 2025-03-30 6.21% 4.96% -1.25%
3 2025-03-29 — 6.21% —

Full EPSS history (11 records total)

Common vulnerability scoring system (CVSS) metrics for CVE-2008-5078

CVSS metrics for this CVE.

Base score Version Severity Vector Exploitability Impact Score source
6.8 2.0 MEDIUM
AV:N/AC:M/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:M)
Exploitation needs some favorable conditions, but not exceptional ones.
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.
 8.6 6.4 [email protected]

Weakness enumeration for CVE-2008-5078

OS Trackers for CVE-2008-5078

vendor priority summary link
debian not yet assigned CVE-2008-5078 not yet assigned priority: Debian including 1 source packages (enscript), 5 status rows across 5 suites (bookworm, bullseye, forky, sid, trixie): resolved 5. https://security-tracker.debian.org/tracker/CVE-2008-5078
redhat medium — https://access.redhat.com/security/cve/CVE-2008-5078
ubuntu medium CVE-2008-5078 medium priority: Ubuntu including 1 source packages (enscript), 5 status rows across 5 suites (dapper, gutsy, hardy, intrepid, upstream): not-affected 4, needs-triage 1. https://ubuntu.com/security/CVE-2008-5078

Affected software / configurations for CVE-2008-5078

Vendor Product Version Raw CPE
gnu escript 1.6.1 cpe:2.3:a:gnu:escript:1.6.1:*:*:*:*:*:*:*

References for CVE-2008-5078

cvelogic Threat Intelligence