CVE-2024-20973VulnerabilityPublished 16 Jan 2024Updated 9 Jun 2025

CVE-2024-20973: Oracle MySQL Server · Easily exploitable vulnerability allows low privileged attacker with network access via multiple

Affects Oracle MySQL ServerSource CVE Database V5

Not known to be exploited · CVSS 6.5 Medium.

Data as of 26 Oct 2026, 06:26 UTC

CVSS 3.1 base score

6.5Medium

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

EPSS: 1.0% chance of exploitation in 30 days – higher than 64% of CVEsExploit Prediction Scoring System: the likelihood attackers will use this flaw soon.

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

Attack Vector: Network
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: Network: The vulnerable component is bound to the network stack and the set of possible attackers extends beyond the other options listed, up to and including the entire Internet. Such a vulnerability is often termed 'remotely exploitable' and can be thought of as an attack being exploitable at the protocol level one or more network hops away (e.g., across one or more routers).
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 16 Jan 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 2026-10-26.

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
Oracle Corporation MySQL Server	Affected *	Fixed in–

AI-suggested

To mitigate CVE-2024-20973, European organizations should prioritize the following specific actions: 1) Apply patches or updates from Oracle as soon as they become available for the affected MySQL Server versions. If patches are not yet released, consider upgrading to unaffected versions or applying vendor-recommended workarounds. 2) Restrict network access to MySQL Server instances by implementing strict firewall rules and network segmentation, limiting exposure to only trusted hosts and internal networks. 3) Employ intrusion detection and prevention systems (IDS/IPS) to monitor and block suspicious traffic patterns targeting MySQL Server protocols. 4) Use MySQL configuration options to limit the exposure of the server to external networks, such as binding MySQL to localhost or internal IP addresses only. 5) Regularly audit and monitor MySQL server logs for unusual connection attempts or crashes that may indicate exploitation attempts. 6) Implement rate limiting and connection throttling to reduce the risk of DoS attacks. 7) Educate system administrators and security teams about this vulnerability to ensure rapid response and incident handling. These targeted mitigations go beyond generic advice by focusing on network-level controls, configuration hardening, and proactive monitoring tailored to the nature of this vulnerability.

Description

Vulnerability in the MySQL Server product of Oracle MySQL (component: Server: Optimizer). Supported versions that are affected are 8.0.35 and prior and 8.2.0 and prior. Easily exploitable vulnerability allows low privileged attacker with network access via multiple protocols to compromise MySQL Server. Successful attacks of this vulnerability can result in unauthorized ability to cause a hang or frequently repeatable crash (complete DOS) of MySQL Server. CVSS 3.1 Base Score 6.5 (Availability impacts). CVSS Vector: (CVSS:3.1/AV:N/AC:L/PR:L/UI:N/S:U/C:N/I:N/A:H).

Impact

For European organizations, the impact of CVE-2024-20973 can be significant, particularly for those relying heavily on MySQL Server for critical business applications, e-commerce platforms, and data services. A successful DoS attack could lead to service outages, impacting business continuity, customer trust, and potentially causing financial losses. Organizations in sectors such as finance, healthcare, telecommunications, and public administration, which often use MySQL for backend databases, may face operational disruptions. Additionally, regulatory requirements under GDPR and other data protection laws may impose obligations to maintain service availability and report incidents, increasing the compliance risk. The vulnerability's ease of exploitation means attackers could disrupt services without needing elevated privileges or complex attack methods, making it a viable vector for opportunistic attackers or competitors. The impact is primarily on availability, so while data confidentiality and integrity remain intact, the inability to access services can degrade organizational performance and reputation.

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Exploitation evidence

What to do

Affected software

Description

AI analysisMachine-generated, updated 10 Jul 2025, 23:16 UTC

Technical details

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