CVE-2019-18217Proftpd Vulnerability
ProFTPD before 1.3.6b and 1.3.7rc before 1.3.7rc2 allows remote unauthenticated denial-of-service due to incorrect handling of overly long commands because main.c in a child process enters an infinite loop.
Published Oct 21, 2019 · Updated Aug 7, 2026 · Also known as DEBIAN-CVE-2019-18217, DLA-1974-1, DSA-4559-1, UBUNTU-CVE-2019-18217
Key Facts
Patch in the next maintenance window- CVE-2019-18217 is a high-severity vulnerability (CVSS 7.5 v3.1) affecting Proftpd, proftpd-dfsg (debian), proftpd-devel (suse) and 7 more products.
- It is not listed in any known-exploited vulnerabilities catalog. No public exploit code is known.
- EPSS estimates a 20% probability of exploitation in the next 30 days.
- Fixed versions are available, including Proftpd 1.3.6b-bp151.4.6.2, Proftpd 1.3.6e-1.10, Proftpd <=1.3.5.
- Brandefense priority: patch in the next maintenance window, because of its high severity, although no exploitation is known.
Scores
CVSS v3.1
7.5
CVSS:3.1/AV:N/AC:L/PR:N/UI:N/S:U/C:N/I:N/A:H
EPSS (30-day exploit likelihood)
20%
Higher than 97.4% of all scored CVEs
Exploit maturity
Proof of concept
ATLAS score
40/100
Publication score, see How it works
Exploitation Verdict
KEV listed
Not listed
Federal due date
None
No federal due date
Ransomware use
Not reported
Attributed actors
None named
Exploit & Defence Guidance
Exploit maturity
Proof of concept
Public exploit code
1
Proof-of-concept links
In-the-wild evidence
0
Reports of active use
Advisories And Exploit References
- advisoryhttps://security-tracker.debian.org/tracker/CVE-2019-18217
- advisoryhttps://ubuntu.com/security/CVE-2019-18217
- advisoryhttps://www.cve.org/CVERecord?id=CVE-2019-18217
- advisoryhttps://github.com/proftpd/proftpd/blob/1.3.6/NEWS
- advisoryhttps://github.com/proftpd/proftpd/blob/1.3.6/RELEASE_NOTES
- advisoryhttps://github.com/proftpd/proftpd/blob/master/NEWS
Description
ProFTPD before 1.3.6b and 1.3.7rc before 1.3.7rc2 allows remote unauthenticated denial-of-service due to incorrect handling of overly long commands because main.c in a child process enters an infinite loop.
Affected Products
62 affected entries in total| Product | Affected versions | Fixed in |
|---|---|---|
| ProftpdProftpd | 1.3.6, 1.3.6-a, 1.3.6-rc1, 1.3.6-rc2, 1.3.6-rc3, 1.3.6-rc4, 1.3.7-rc1 | 1.3.5 |
| proftpd-dfsgdebian | See advisory | 1.3.6a-2 |
| proftpd-develsuse | See advisory | 1.3.6b-bp151.4.6.2 |
| proftpd-docsuse | See advisory | 1.3.6b-bp151.4.6.2 |
| proftpd-langsuse | See advisory | 1.3.6b-bp151.4.6.2 |
Patched Releases
Proftpd
1.3.6b-bp151.4.6.2, 1.3.6e-1.10, <=1.3.5
proftpd-devel
1.3.6b-bp151.4.6.2, 1.3.6e-1.10
proftpd-dfsg
1.3.5b-4+deb9u2, 1.3.5e+r1.3.5-2+deb8u4, 1.3.6-4+deb10u2, 1.3.6a-2
proftpd-doc
1.3.6b-bp151.4.6.2, 1.3.6e-1.10
proftpd-lang
1.3.6b-bp151.4.6.2, 1.3.6e-1.10
proftpd-ldap
1.3.6b-bp151.4.6.2, 1.3.6e-1.10
proftpd-mysql
1.3.6b-bp151.4.6.2, 1.3.6e-1.10
proftpd-pgsql
1.3.6b-bp151.4.6.2, 1.3.6e-1.10
proftpd-radius
1.3.6b-bp151.4.6.2, 1.3.6e-1.10
proftpd-sqlite
1.3.6b-bp151.4.6.2, 1.3.6e-1.10
Timeline
Publicly disclosed
Oct 21, 2019
Last updated
Aug 7, 2026
Weakness Type
- CWE-835 Loop with Unreachable Exit Condition ('Infinite Loop')
References
- advisorysecurity-tracker.debian.org · CVE-2019-18217
- advisoryubuntu.com · CVE-2019-18217
- advisorycve.org · CVERecord
- advisorygithub.com · NEWS
- advisorygithub.com · RELEASE_NOTES
FAQ
Common Questions.
ProFTPD before 1.3.6b and 1.3.7rc before 1.3.7rc2 allows remote unauthenticated denial-of-service due to incorrect handling of overly long commands because main.c in a child process enters an infinite loop.
Affected: Proftpd versions 1.3.6, 1.3.6-a, 1.3.6-rc1, 1.3.6-rc2, 1.3.6-rc3, 1.3.6-rc4, 1.3.7-rc1; proftpd-dfsg (debian); proftpd-devel (suse), among others. The full list is in the CVE brief.
It is not listed in any known-exploited vulnerabilities catalog.
No, it is not currently listed in the CISA Known Exploited Vulnerabilities catalog.
No public exploit code is known.
Fixed versions are available, including Proftpd 1.3.6b-bp151.4.6.2, Proftpd 1.3.6e-1.10, Proftpd <=1.3.5.
Brandefense priority: patch in the next maintenance window, because of its high severity, although no exploitation is known.
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