CVE-2024-0684VulnerabilityPublished 6 Feb 2024Updated 15 Oct 2026

CVE-2024-0684: coreutils · Heap-based Buffer Overflow

Affects coreutilsSource CVE Database V5

Not known to be exploited · CVSS 5.5 Medium.

Data as of 26 Oct 2026, 08:30 UTC

CVSS 3.1 base score

5.5Medium

How severe the flaw is on the 0–10 CVSS scale.

EPSS: 0.4% chance of exploitation in 30 days – higher than 41% of CVEsExploit Prediction Scoring System: the likelihood attackers will use this flaw soon.

CVSS:3.1/AV:L/AC:L/PR:L/UI:N/S:U/C:N/I:N/A:H

Attack Vector: Local
Attack Complexity: Low
Privileges Required: Low
User Interaction: None
Scope: Unchanged
Confidentiality: None
Integrity: None
Availability: High

Bold values are the worst case: easiest to exploit or largest impact.

Attack Vector: Local: The vulnerable component is not bound to the network stack and the attacker’s path is via read/write/execute capabilities. Either: the attacker exploits the vulnerability by accessing the target system locally (e.g., keyboard, console), or remotely (e.g., SSH); or the attacker relies on User Interaction by another person to perform actions required to exploit the vulnerability (e.g., tricking a legitimate user into opening a malicious document).
Attack Complexity: Low: Specialized access conditions or extenuating circumstances do not exist. An attacker can expect repeatable success against the vulnerable component.
Privileges Required: Low: The attacker is authorized with (i.e., requires) privileges that provide basic user capabilities that could normally affect only settings and files owned by a user. Alternatively, an attacker with Low privileges may have the ability to cause an impact only to non-sensitive resources.
User Interaction: None: The vulnerable system can be exploited without any interaction from any user.
Scope: Unchanged: An exploited vulnerability can only affect resources managed by the same security authority. In this case, the vulnerable component and the impacted component are either the same, or both are managed by the same security authority.
Confidentiality: None: There is no loss of confidentiality within the impacted component.
Integrity: None: There is no loss of integrity within the impacted component.
Availability: High: There is total loss of availability, resulting in the attacker being able to fully deny access to resources in the impacted component; this loss is either sustained (while the attacker continues to deliver the attack) or persistent (the condition persists even after the attack has completed). Alternatively, the attacker has the ability to deny some availability, but the loss of availability presents a direct, serious consequence to the impacted component (e.g., the attacker cannot disrupt existing connections, but can prevent new connections; the attacker can repeatedly exploit a vulnerability that, in each instance of a successful attack, leaks a only small amount of memory, but after repeated exploitation causes a service to become completely unavailable).

Definitions: FIRST CVSS v3.1 specification.

Exploitation evidence

Disclosed: evidence found.
CVE published 6 Feb 2024
Detectable: no evidence on record.
No public nuclei template indexed
Weaponised: no evidence on record.
No public exploit code indexed in Metasploit or Exploit-DB
Exploited in the wildExploited: no evidence on record.
Not in CISA KEV and no source reports exploitation
Observed by OffSeq MirageSeen by Mirage: no evidence on record.
No attack traffic recorded by OffSeq Mirage sensors

A missing step is not evidence of safety. Sources: cve.org (opens in a new tab), the Metasploit, Exploit-DB and nuclei-templates index as of 26 Oct 2026.

Disclosed: The CVE record is public on cve.org. Its publication is t = 0.
Detectable: A public nuclei template can find exposed instances, for defenders and attackers alike.
Weaponised: Public exploit code exists in Metasploit or Exploit-DB, or CISA SSVC reports a public proof of concept.
Exploited in the wild: CISA KEV lists it, CISA SSVC rates exploitation active, or a source reports attacks.
Observed by OffSeq Mirage: OffSeq Mirage honeypot sensors recorded attack traffic for this CVE, or found exposed hosts without attack traffic.

Moments are spaced evenly, not to scale; a dashed line marks a gap of six months or more. Deltas count from t = 0. Sources that give only a date (CISA KEV, Exploit-DB, or a time of exactly 00:00Z) read “same day” rather than hours. Metasploit modules carry the flaw’s disclosure date, not their release date, and nuclei templates carry no date, so both appear above but not on the timeline.

What to do

Affected software

Product	Affected	Fixed in
Red Hatredhat/coreutils`pkg:rpm/redhat/coreutils`Other threats	Affected =9.2 =9.3 =9.4	Fixed in–

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AI-suggested

To mitigate CVE-2024-0684, organizations should: 1) Upgrade GNU coreutils to a patched version once available from trusted repositories or vendors; 2) Until patches are released, restrict access to the split utility by limiting user permissions and employing access controls to prevent untrusted users from executing it; 3) Monitor system logs and application behavior for unexpected crashes or anomalies related to split usage; 4) Implement input validation or sanitization in scripts or applications invoking split to avoid processing untrusted or excessively large input data; 5) Use containerization or sandboxing to isolate processes running split, minimizing impact of potential crashes; 6) Employ system-level resource limits (e.g., ulimit) to constrain memory usage and reduce risk of heap corruption; 7) Educate system administrators and users about the vulnerability to avoid inadvertent exploitation; and 8) Follow vendor advisories and apply security updates promptly once patches are available.

Description

A flaw was found in the GNU coreutils "split" program. A heap overflow with user-controlled data of multiple hundred bytes in length could occur in the line_bytes_split() function, potentially leading to an application crash and denial of service.

Impact

The primary impact of CVE-2024-0684 is denial of service due to application crashes when the vulnerable split utility processes crafted input. This can disrupt automated file splitting operations, batch processing, or scripts relying on coreutils, potentially affecting system stability and availability. Since the vulnerability requires local access, attackers must already have some level of system access to exploit it, limiting remote exploitation risks. However, in multi-user environments or shared systems, malicious users could intentionally trigger crashes to disrupt services or workflows. The lack of confidentiality or integrity impact means data theft or manipulation is not a concern from this vulnerability alone. Organizations with critical systems that use GNU coreutils extensively, especially in automated pipelines or embedded systems, may experience operational interruptions. The absence of known exploits reduces immediate risk but does not eliminate the need for timely remediation.

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Exploitation evidence

What to do

Affected software

Description

AI analysisMachine-generated, updated 28 Feb 2026, 11:08 UTC

Technical details

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