CVE-2003-0124

man - Remote Code Execution via Malformed Man File with Improper Quotes

Title source: manual
STIX 2.1

Exploitation Summary

EIP tracks 1 public exploit for CVE-2003-0124. PoCs published by Jack Lloyd.

AI-analyzed exploit summary This exploit demonstrates a command injection vulnerability in the man program (CVE-2003-0124) by leveraging improper handling of the .so directive in man pages. An attacker can craft a malicious man page that executes arbitrary commands when processed.

Description

man before 1.5l allows attackers to execute arbitrary code via a malformed man file with improper quotes, which causes the my_xsprintf function to return a string with the value "unsafe," which is then executed as a program via a system call if it is in the search path of the user who runs man.

Exploits (1)

exploitdb WORKING POC VERIFIED
by Jack Lloyd · textlocallinux
https://www.exploit-db.com/exploits/22344

This exploit demonstrates a command injection vulnerability in the man program (CVE-2003-0124) by leveraging improper handling of the .so directive in man pages. An attacker can craft a malicious man page that executes arbitrary commands when processed.

Classification
Working Poc 90%
Attack Type
Rce
Complexity
Trivial
Reliability
Reliable
Target: man (version not specified, likely older versions)
No auth needed
Prerequisites: Ability to create or modify man pages on the target system
devstral-2 · analyzed Feb 16, 2026 Full analysis →

References (7)

Core 7
Core References
Exploit, Patch, Vendor Advisory vdb-entry x_refsource_bid
http://www.securityfocus.com/bid/7066
Vendor Advisory vendor-advisory x_refsource_redhat
http://www.redhat.com/support/errata/RHSA-2003-134.html
Mailing List vendor-advisory x_refsource_gentoo
http://marc.info/?l=bugtraq&m=104802285112752&w=2
Vendor Advisory vendor-advisory x_refsource_redhat
http://www.redhat.com/support/errata/RHSA-2003-133.html
Mailing List mailing-list x_refsource_bugtraq
http://marc.info/?l=bugtraq&m=104740927915154&w=2
Third Party Advisory, VDB Entry vdb-entry x_refsource_xf
https://exchange.xforce.ibmcloud.com/vulnerabilities/11512
Vendor Advisory vendor-advisory x_refsource_conectiva
http://distro.conectiva.com.br/atualizacoes/?id=a&anuncio=000620

Scores

EPSS 0.0151
EPSS Percentile 71.2%

Details

Status published
Products (5)
andries_brouwer/man 1.5h1
andries_brouwer/man 1.5i
andries_brouwer/man 1.5i2
andries_brouwer/man 1.5j
andries_brouwer/man 1.5k
Published Mar 18, 2003
Tracked Since Feb 18, 2026