Security readout for executives and security teams
Plain-English summary
This is an old vulnerability in the Unix sort utility on FreeBSD 4.1.1 and earlier. It uses predictable temporary file names and mishandles pre-existing temporary files, which can make sort crash. The main business concern is disruption or unsafe behavior in scripts that rely on sort for security-sensitive processing.
Executive priority
Low immediate urgency for modern environments; higher priority if legacy FreeBSD systems remain in production or security-critical scripts depend on sort. Treat this as a legacy hygiene and script-resilience issue unless vendor evidence shows broader exposure.
Technical view
CVE-2001-0310 describes predictable temporary file naming in sort and improper handling when that temporary file already exists. The CVE names FreeBSD 4.1.1 and earlier, with possible impact to other operating systems. No CVSS, CWE, patch detail, or confirmed exploit activity is provided in the supplied sources.
Likely exposure
Exposure is most likely on legacy FreeBSD 4.1.1 or earlier systems, especially where automated scripts call sort. The source also says possibly other operating systems, but does not identify them. Modern supported systems are less likely to be affected, but should be verified against vendor advisories.
Exploitation context
The described issue requires influence over temporary-file conditions used by sort. The documented outcome is a crash, with possible impact to security-sensitive scripts. There is no KEV listing and no supplied source confirming active exploitation.
Researcher notes
Evidence is limited. The CVE names FreeBSD 4.1.1 and earlier and vaguely notes possible other operating systems. Severity is unknown, no CVSS is provided, and no patch or exploitation details are included in the supplied public sources.
Mitigation direction
- Inventory legacy FreeBSD systems and scripts that depend on sort.
- Check FreeBSD or operating-system vendor guidance for fixed versions or advisories.
- Migrate unsupported FreeBSD releases to supported versions where possible.
- Review security-sensitive scripts for reliance on sort temporary-file behavior.
Validation and detection
- Confirm whether any hosts run FreeBSD 4.1.1 or earlier.
- Identify scripts that invoke sort in privileged or security-sensitive workflows.
- Check vendor package history for sort fixes on relevant platforms.
- Document unsupported systems requiring upgrade or compensating controls.
Public sources used
Generated from the cited source records. This long-tail analysis has not been individually reviewed by a named human.
Conservative CVE-to-ATT&CK context
These mappings and lookup hints may be relevant to the vulnerability behavior, CWE, affected product, or exposure path. Glexia-inferred context is not an official MITRE, ATT&CK, CWE, or CVE Program mapping.
ATT&CK lookup starting points
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CVE-2001-0310 mapping review
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Open ATT&CK lookup- Severity
- Unknown
- CVSS
- Not scored
- Known Exploited
- No
- Published
CNA and ADP enrichment extracted from CVE v5
These fields come from the CVE record and ADP containers, not from Glexia's Take. They preserve time-varying source decisions such as CISA SSVC, KEV status, CVSS metrics, and provider references.
CVSS and timeline data
No CVSS vectors or timeline events were available in the normalized CVE source material.
Source materials
- CVE List V5 sourceCVE List V5
- sort-temp-file-abort(6038)CVE reference · vdb-entry, x_refsource_XF
Products and packages named in the record
CWE details
CWE links open Glexia weakness intelligence pages with official CWE context, developer remediation guidance, and related CVE mappings.