Severity by source
CVSS:4.0/AV:N/AC:L/AT:N/PR:N/UI:N/VC:N/VI:N/VA:H/SC:N/SI:N/SA:N/E:X/CR:X/IR:X/AR:X/MAV:X/MAC:X/MAT:X/MPR:X/MUI:X/MVC:X/MVI:X/MVA:X/MSC:X/MSI:X/MSA:X/S:X/AU:X/R:X/V:X/RE:X/U:X
Network-reachable crash with no auth or user interaction; scope unchanged as only the client process terminates; pure availability impact.
Primary rating from Vendor (VulnCheck).
CVSS VectorVendor: VulnCheck
CVSS:4.0/AV:N/AC:L/AT:N/PR:N/UI:N/VC:N/VI:N/VA:H/SC:N/SI:N/SA:N/E:X/CR:X/IR:X/AR:X/MAV:X/MAC:X/MAT:X/MPR:X/MUI:X/MVC:X/MVI:X/MVA:X/MSC:X/MSI:X/MSA:X/S:X/AU:X/R:X/V:X/RE:X/U:X
Lifecycle Timeline
3DescriptionCVE.org
FreeRDP before 3.29.0 contains a null pointer dereference vulnerability in smartcard cache request decoders that accept NULL NDR pointers for LookupName in SCARD_IOCTL_READCACHEA and SCARD_IOCTL_WRITECACHEA operations. When smartcard emulation is enabled, attackers can send crafted smartcard cache requests with NULL lookup-name pointers to trigger strlen() on a null pointer, causing client process termination.
AnalysisAI
Client process termination in FreeRDP before 3.29.0 is achievable by remote unauthenticated attackers through crafted smartcard cache requests. The flaw resides in the NDR (Network Data Representation) decoder for SCARD_IOCTL_READCACHEA and SCARD_IOCTL_WRITECACHEA operations, which accept NULL for the LookupName pointer; when strlen() is subsequently called on that null pointer, the client process crashes. …
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Attack ChainAIDerived
Hypothetical attack flow derived from CVE metadata
Vulnerability AssessmentAI
| Exploitation | Smartcard emulation must be explicitly enabled on the FreeRDP client - this is the necessary and sufficient configuration condition. … Additional conditions and limiting factors are described in the full assessment. |
| Risk Assessment | The CVSS 4.0 score of 8.7 (AV:N/AC:L/AT:N/PR:N/UI:N/VC:N/VI:N/VA:H) reflects a pure availability impact: the attack is network-reachable, requires no authentication, and the outcome is a hard client-process crash. … Full risk analysis with EPSS, KEV, and SSVC signal comparison available after sign-in. |
| Exploit Scenario | An attacker controlling or impersonating an RDP server sends a crafted SCARD_IOCTL_READCACHEA or SCARD_IOCTL_WRITECACHEA request with a NULL NDR LookupName pointer to a connecting FreeRDP client that has smartcard emulation enabled. The client's decoder passes the NULL directly to strlen(), the process crashes with SIGSEGV, and the remote desktop session is terminated. … |
| Remediation | Upgrade FreeRDP to version 3.29.0 or later, which incorporates the fixes from commits f3b4347105114fe7453828736bea069999af320f and 5370fb26fbf034ecd11d3026b6ad639b5fff493f. … Detailed patch versions, workarounds, and compensating controls in full report. |
Recommended ActionAI
Within 24 hours, inventory FreeRDP installations and identify which have smartcard feature enabled; review logs for suspicious smartcard cache requests and escalate any anomalies to incident response. …
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FreeRDP is a free implementation of the Remote Desktop Protocol. Rated critical severity (CVSS 9.8), this vulnerability
FreeRDP is a free implementation of the Remote Desktop Protocol (RDP), released under the Apache license. Rated critical
FreeRDP is a free implementation of the Remote Desktop Protocol (RDP), released under the Apache license. Rated critical
FreeRDP is a free implementation of the Remote Desktop Protocol (RDP), released under the Apache license. Rated critical
Same weakness CWE-476 – NULL Pointer Dereference
View allSame technique Null Pointer Dereference
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External POC / Exploit Code
Leaving vuln.today
EUVD-2026-51819
GHSA-hq8h-rvcv-jvh4