CVE-2013-4544: hw/net/vmxnet3.c in QEMU 2.0.0-rc0, 1.7.1, and earlier allows local guest users to cause a denial of servic...

Security readout for executives and security teams

This vulnerability affects QEMU’s vmxnet3 network device emulation. A user inside a guest virtual machine could trigger a crash, and the CVE notes possible arbitrary code execution. The main business concern is a hostile or compromised VM affecting the host or virtualization service, but public scoring and exploit evidence are incomplete. Exposure is most likely where QEMU versions in the affected range are running guests with vmxnet3 emulated network devices, especially multi-tenant or untrusted guest environments. The source bundle does not identify downstream products beyond QEMU. Prioritize remediation on virtualization hosts that run untrusted guests. A guest-to-host denial of service, with possible code execution, can affect service availability and isolation. Lower urgency may be reasonable for fully trusted, isolated lab environments after verification. Mitigation focus: Apply vendor-supported QEMU updates containing the referenced vmxnet3 fixes.; Review Ubuntu, Red Hat, or platform vendor guidance for affected package status.; Prioritize hosts running untrusted or multi-tenant guest workloads..

Prepared

Jun 14, 2026, 14:16 UTC (UTC+00:00)

Generated from the cited source records. This long-tail analysis has not been individually reviewed by a named human.