What is the CVSS score of CVE-2018-16791?

CVE-2018-16791 has a CVSS 3.0 base score of 9.8 (Critical). CVSS vector: CVSS:3.0/AV:N/AC:L/PR:N/UI:N/S:U/C:H/I:H/A:H. EPSS exploitation probability: 1.5%.

Sftp Scp Server CVE-2018-16791

CRITICAL

Insufficiently Protected Credentials (CWE-522)

2018-12-05 cve@mitre.org

Information Disclosure Sftp Scp Server Solarwinds

9.8

CVSS 3.0 · NVD

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Vulnerability Assessment

Weakness	CWE CWE-522 OWASP Top 10:2025 A06:2025 - Insecure Design ASVS 5.0 V6 - Authentication Credential protection in transit/storage
Impact	CVSS score of 9.8 (CRITICAL). Attack characteristics: network attack vector, low complexity, no privileges required, no user interaction not required.
Exploit ScenarioDerived	A remote attacker could obtain user credentials due to weak protection mechanisms by sending crafted requests to the affected application. No authentication is required to exploit this vulnerability.

Act Now Prioritize within 24-48h. Why: CRITICAL severity.

No patch listed yet 1.5% exploitation probability (EPSS)

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AnalysisAI

In SolarWinds SFTP/SCP Server through 2018-09-10, the configuration file is world readable and writable, and stores user passwords in an insecure manner, allowing an attacker to determine passwords. Rated critical severity (CVSS 9.8), this vulnerability is remotely exploitable, no authentication required, low attack complexity. No vendor patch available.

RemediationAI

No vendor patch is available at time of analysis. Monitor vendor advisories for updates. Hash passwords with strong algorithms (bcrypt, argon2), encrypt credentials in transit and at rest, never log credentials.

Affects your stack

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Technical ContextAI · show details

This vulnerability is classified as Insufficiently Protected Credentials (CWE-522), which allows attackers to obtain user credentials due to weak protection mechanisms. In SolarWinds SFTP/SCP Server through 2018-09-10, the configuration file is world readable and writable, and stores user passwords in an insecure manner, allowing an attacker to determine passwords for potentially privileged accounts. This also grants the attacker an ability to backdoor the server. Affected products include: Solarwinds Sftp\/Scp Server. Version information: through 2018.

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Exploit and PoC references, threat intelligence from 22 sources

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Severity by source

NVD PRIMARY 9.8 CRITICAL

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

Primary rating from NVD · only source for this CVE.

CVSS VectorNVD

Attack Vector

Network

Attack Complexity

Low

Privileges Required

None

User Interaction

None

Scope

Unchanged

Confidentiality

High

Integrity

High

Availability

High

DescriptionNVD

In SolarWinds SFTP/SCP Server through 2018-09-10, the configuration file is world readable and writable, and stores user passwords in an insecure manner, allowing an attacker to determine passwords for potentially privileged accounts. This also grants the attacker an ability to backdoor the server.

Threat Intelligence Overview

EPSS Score

1.5%

Top 28% exploitable

Data Quality

2 sources

Confidence: Low

NVD

CVE.org

EPSS

How this decision was reached

The engine reads each signal below and applies a fixed list of rules from top to bottom. The first rule that matches sets the recommended action – like a statement, every line is shown.

SignalValue

Severity CRITICAL

CISA KEV No

Public POC No

EPSS 1.5%

Patch available No

Active threat No

Deciding rule

CRITICAL severity

What every action level means

Emergency Immediate action required. Criteria: CRITICAL + in CISA KEV (actively exploited) without patch, OR CRITICAL + EPSS > 30% without patch, OR CRITICAL + active threat signals without patch.

Act Now Prioritize within 24-48h. Criteria: in KEV with patch available, OR CRITICAL + public POC, OR HIGH + EPSS > 10%, OR CRITICAL + active threat, OR any CRITICAL severity.

This Week Schedule remediation this week. Criteria: HIGH severity (CVSS 7.0-8.9). Patch within normal change window.

This Month Plan within 30 days. Criteria: MEDIUM severity (CVSS 4.0-6.9), lower exploitation probability. Include in regular patch cycle.

Monitor Track and reassess. Criteria: LOW severity (CVSS 0.1-3.9), minimal exploitation risk. No immediate action needed.

SSVC AssessmentENISA

SSVC Decision· derived

Scheduled

Exploitation· derived

None

System Exposure· derived

Open

Automatable· derived

Yes

Human Impact· derived

Medium

Priority Score

Low Medium High Critical

KEV: 0

EPSS: +2

CVSS: +49

PoC: 0

Weaponized: 0

Threat intel: 0

Gov advisory: 0

Attack Technique

Information Disclosure MEDIUM

Information disclosure occurs when an application unintentionally exposes sensitive data that aids attackers in reconnaissance or directly compromises security.