CVE-2021-29376Network attack vector

Client crash via unchecked ctime return

Published Mar 30, 2021 · Updated Aug 3, 2024

Denial of service in ircII before 20210314 allows remote attackers to crash the client and disconnect it via a crafted CTCP UTC message. The do_utc handler passes the parsed timestamp to ctime() and copies its return value without first checking for NULL; an invalid value makes ctime() fail. The attacker must share an IRC network with the victim and send the malformed UTC request; successful exploitation terminates only the victim's IRC client.

CVSS severity7.5
High
EPSS probability2.33%
Next 30 days · Sep 16, 2026
Known exploitationUnconfirmed
Based on sourced intelligence
Hinoki checkNot available
Coverage for this vulnerability

See if you're affected

Explore vulnerability checks for your environment with Hinoki.

Book a demo

Summary

What happened

Denial of service in ircII before 20210314 allows remote attackers to crash the client and disconnect it via a crafted CTCP UTC message. The do_utc handler passes the parsed timestamp to ctime() and copies its return value without first checking for NULL; an invalid value makes ctime() fail. The attacker must share an IRC network with the victim and send the malformed UTC request; successful exploitation terminates only the victim's IRC client.

The record

CVE
CVE-2021-29376
Published
Mar 30, 2021
Updated
Aug 3, 2024
Vendor
Unknown vendor
Product
Unknown product
Classifications
T1499.004
Attack vector
network
Privileges
unauthenticated

Timeline

How it unfolded

  1. Mar 30, 2021CVE publishedPublication date reported by the CVE source.
  2. Aug 3, 2024Record updatedLatest update available in the CVE record.

Exploitability

Present is not the same as exploitable

Compare your product and version with the public record. A matching version still requires validation against your environment.

Is a vulnerable build present?

Affected buildAffected product and version details are unavailable.

What conditions does exploitation require?

Attack vectornetwork
Required privilegesunauthenticated

What is affected?

Affected products and versions are unavailable in this record.

Published CVSS scores

7.5UbuntuCVSS:3.1/AV:N/AC:L/PR:N/UI:N/S:U/C:N/I:N/A:H
5.0NIST NVDAV:N/AC:L/Au:N/C:N/I:N/A:P

CVSS describes severity. EPSS estimates exploitation probability.

Attacks

What attackers are doing with it

Daily unique IPs observed by Shadowserver honeypots for known exploited vulnerabilities (KEVs). Missing observations do not establish an absence of attacks.

Daily unique IPsNo honeypot observations are available for this CVE in the selected window.

No observations available

Sep 10, 2026Sep 16, 2026
Latest reporting daySep 16, 2026
Latest daily unique IPsUnavailable
Prior 30-day averageUnavailable
SourceShadowserver honeypots (KEV)
Vectornetwork
Privilegesunauthenticated
Known exploitationUnconfirmed
Public exploitUnconfirmed

Weakness, pattern, technique

T1499.004Application or System Exploitation

Public exploit references

No public exploit references are available in this record.

Labels summarize the accepted research assessment. They do not indicate a test against your environment.

Technologies

Your stack

See the directory against your own environment.

Your stack

Check the software in your environment

Book a demo to see how Hinoki identifies affected software and validates exploitability in your environment.

Book a demo