Security readout for executives and security teams
Plain-English summary
This issue can crash ZenMap 7.70 when it processes a specially crafted XML scan file. It affects availability of the local application, not confidentiality or integrity. Business urgency is moderate because exploitation requires the vulnerable tool and a malicious file-handling scenario, but security teams may use ZenMap on administrative workstations.
Executive priority
Treat as a targeted operational stability issue for security tooling. Prioritize systems used by security teams and administrators, but do not treat it as an enterprise-wide remote compromise risk based on the provided sources.
Technical view
CVE-2018-25282 is a CWE-674 denial-of-service flaw in ZenMap 7.70 involving exponential XML entity expansion. A crafted XML file imported through ZenMap’s scan import functionality can consume excessive resources and crash the program. The provided CVSS v4 score is 6.9, with high availability impact and no listed confidentiality or integrity impact.
Likely exposure
Exposure is most likely on workstations or security operations systems running ZenMap 7.70, especially where users import XML scan files. This is not described as a remotely reachable network service vulnerability. The source bundle lists only ZenMap 7.70 as affected.
Exploitation context
An ExploitDB reference exists, but the CVE is not listed as KEV and the sources do not state active exploitation. Practical risk depends on whether a malicious XML file can be introduced and processed by ZenMap’s import feature.
Researcher notes
The record identifies XML entity expansion and CWE-674, but the source bundle does not name a fixed release or vendor mitigation. Avoid assuming broader Nmap components are affected beyond the listed ZenMap 7.70 import path. ExploitDB indicates public exploit information exists; KEV is false.
Mitigation direction
- Check Nmap/ZenMap vendor guidance for fixed or supported versions.
- Avoid importing XML scan files from untrusted or unknown sources.
- Remove or isolate ZenMap 7.70 where scan import is unnecessary.
- Run ZenMap with least-privileged user accounts.
- Use endpoint controls to restrict risky file handling where feasible.
Validation and detection
- Inventory systems for ZenMap or Nmap 7.70 installations.
- Identify users or teams importing XML scan files into ZenMap.
- Review recent ZenMap crashes or resource exhaustion events.
- Confirm whether scan XML files come from trusted sources.
- Track vendor advisories for a named fixed version or workaround.
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
Use these exact CWE pages and searches to review the Glexia ATT&CK library from this CVE's weakness and description context.
CWE-674: Exact CWE lookup
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Open ATT&CK lookupCVE-2018-25282 mapping review
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Open ATT&CK lookup- Severity
- Medium
- CVSS
- 6.9 (4.0)
- Known Exploited
- No
- Published
Vector: CVSS:4.0/AV:L/AC:L/AT:N/PR:N/UI:N/VC:N/VI:N/VA:H/SC:N/SI:N/SA:N
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 vector scores
1 official scoreWe collect every scored CVSS vector available in the official CNA and ADP containers. When more than one version is present, the table keeps the source vectors side by side instead of collapsing them into the highest score.
CVSS:4.0/AV:L/AC:L/AT:N/PR:N/UI:N/VC:N/VI:N/VA:H/SC:N/SI:N/SA:N——Primary CVE scoreVulnerability scoring details
Base CVSS 4.0 score
6.9MediumVector: CVSS:4.0/AV:L/AC:L/AT:N/PR:N/UI:N/VC:N/VI:N/VA:H/SC:N/SI:N/SA:N
Source materials
- CVE List V5 sourceCVE List V5
- ExploitDB-45357CVE reference · exploit
- Product ReferenceCVE reference · product
- VulnCheck Advisory: Nmap 7.70 Denial of Service via XML Entity ExpansionCVE reference · third-party-advisory
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.
Uncontrolled Recursion
Uncontrolled Recursion represents a recurring weakness pattern that can create exploitable paths when design, validation, or implementation controls are missing.