CVE-2017-13704

In dnsmasq before 2.78, if the DNS packet size does not match the expected size, the size parameter in a memset call gets a negative value. As it is an unsigned value, memset ends up writing up to 0xffffffff zero's (0xffffffffffffffff in 64 bit platforms), making dnsmasq crash.

Published: 2017-10-03 Last update: 2026-05-13 Assigner: [email protected] Source: [email protected]
NVD Status：Modified，CVE State: published
View at NVD, CVE.org, EUVD

CVE-2017-13704 is rated Moderate Risk (63.1/100): CVSS High severity, with high exploitation likelihood (EPSS 77.79%, 99th percentile). EPSS ranks this CVE among the most likely to be exploited in the near term. High exploitation likelihood—assess exposure and prioritize 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-2017-13704

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 2026-05-28 79.32% 77.79% -1.53%
2 2026-03-25 81.75% 79.32% -2.44%
3 2025-08-30 — 81.75% —

Full EPSS history (15 records total)

Common vulnerability scoring system (CVSS) metrics for CVE-2017-13704

CVSS metrics for this CVE.

Base score Version Severity Vector Exploitability Impact Score source
7.5 3.0 HIGH
CVSS:3.0/AV:N/AC:L/PR:N/UI:N/S:U/C:N/I:N/A:H Click to expand
Attack vector (AV:N)
Could be attacked over the internet or any normal routed network—not just someone sitting at the machine.
Attack complexity (AC:L)
Once they can reach the bug, pulling it off is straightforward—no weird race conditions or rare setup.
Privileges required (PR:N)
No account or special rights needed—anonymous or random user is enough.
User interaction (UI:N)
Nobody has to click “OK” or open a trap file; it can work without a victim helping.
Scope (S:U)
Damage stays in the same “trust bubble” as the broken component—no big spill into unrelated systems.
Confidentiality (C:N)
Doesn’t really leak secrets in a meaningful way.
Integrity (I:N)
Data isn’t meaningfully altered or forged.
Availability (A:H)
Could take the service down hard or make it unusable for people who depend on it.
 3.9 3.6 [email protected]
5.0 2.0 MEDIUM
AV:N/AC:L/Au:N/C:N/I:N/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:N)
No confidentiality impact.
Integrity impact (I:N)
No integrity impact.
Availability impact (A:P)
Partial availability impact.
 10.0 2.9 [email protected]

Weakness enumeration for CVE-2017-13704

OS Trackers for CVE-2017-13704

vendor priority summary link
alpine — CVE-2017-13704: 1 source package rows (dnsmasq); 10 state rows across 10 repos (3.10-main, 3.11-main, 3.12-main, 3.17-main, 3.18-main, 3.19-main, 3.20-main, 3.21-main, 3.22-main, edge-main); fixed 10, open 0. https://security.alpinelinux.org/vuln/CVE-2017-13704
debian not yet assigned CVE-2017-13704 not yet assigned priority: Debian including 1 source packages (dnsmasq), 5 status rows across 5 suites (bookworm, bullseye, forky, sid, trixie): resolved 5. https://security-tracker.debian.org/tracker/CVE-2017-13704
redhat high — https://access.redhat.com/security/cve/CVE-2017-13704
ubuntu high CVE-2017-13704 high priority: Ubuntu including 1 source packages (dnsmasq), 4 status rows across 4 suites (trusty, upstream, xenial, zesty): not-affected 3, needs-triage 1. https://ubuntu.com/security/CVE-2017-13704

Affected software / configurations for CVE-2017-13704

Vendor Product Version Raw CPE
canonical ubuntu_linux 14.04 cpe:2.3:o:canonical:ubuntu_linux:14.04:*:*:*:lts:*:*:*
canonical ubuntu_linux 16.04 cpe:2.3:o:canonical:ubuntu_linux:16.04:*:*:*:lts:*:*:*
canonical ubuntu_linux 17.04 cpe:2.3:o:canonical:ubuntu_linux:17.04:*:*:*:*:*:*:*
debian debian_linux 7.0 cpe:2.3:o:debian:debian_linux:7.0:*:*:*:*:*:*:*
debian debian_linux 7.1 cpe:2.3:o:debian:debian_linux:7.1:*:*:*:*:*:*:*
debian debian_linux 9.0 cpe:2.3:o:debian:debian_linux:9.0:*:*:*:*:*:*:*
fedoraproject fedora 27 cpe:2.3:o:fedoraproject:fedora:27:*:*:*:*:*:*:*
novell leap 42.2 cpe:2.3:o:novell:leap:42.2:*:*:*:*:*:*:*
novell leap 42.3 cpe:2.3:o:novell:leap:42.3:*:*:*:*:*:*:*
redhat enterprise_linux_desktop 7.0 cpe:2.3:o:redhat:enterprise_linux_desktop:7.0:*:*:*:*:*:*:*
redhat enterprise_linux_server 7.0 cpe:2.3:o:redhat:enterprise_linux_server:7.0:*:*:*:*:*:*:*
redhat enterprise_linux_workstation 7.0 cpe:2.3:o:redhat:enterprise_linux_workstation:7.0:*:*:*:*:*:*:*
thekelleys dnsmasq <= 2.77 cpe:2.3:a:thekelleys:dnsmasq:*:*:*:*:*:*:*:*

References for CVE-2017-13704

URL Tags
http://thekelleys.org.uk/dnsmasq/CHANGELOG Release Notes Vendor Advisory
http://thekelleys.org.uk/gitweb/?p=dnsmasq.git%3Ba=commit%3Bh=63437ffbb58837b214b4b92cb1c54bc5f3279928
http://www.securityfocus.com/bid/101085 Third Party Advisory VDB Entry
http://www.securityfocus.com/bid/101977
http://www.securitytracker.com/id/1039474 Third Party Advisory VDB Entry
https://access.redhat.com/security/vulnerabilities/3199382 Issue Tracking Third Party Advisory
https://cert-portal.siemens.com/productcert/pdf/ssa-689071.pdf
https://lists.fedoraproject.org/archives/list/package-announce%40lists.fedoraproject.org/message/4TK6DWC53WSU6633EVZL7H4PCWBYHMHK/
https://security.googleblog.com/2017/10/behind-masq-yet-more-dns-and-dhcp.html Third Party Advisory
https://www.mail-archive.com/dnsmasq-discuss%40lists.thekelleys.org.uk/msg11664.html
https://www.mail-archive.com/dnsmasq-discuss%40lists.thekelleys.org.uk/msg11665.html
https://www.synology.com/support/security/Synology_SA_17_59_Dnsmasq
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