CVE-2018-25117: VestaCP Debian Installer Malicious Backdoor Supply Chain Compromise
- Is it exploited?
Reported, not confirmed by CISA. VulnCheck KEV lists it as exploited in the wild. CISA has not added it to its Known Exploited Vulnerabilities catalog as of .
VulnCheck KEV lists it since . It cites 4 public reports, the first from .
- How likely is exploitation in the next 30 days?
- 0.4%
EPSS score, percentile 38.3 of all scored records. A probability estimated by FIRST, not a report of exploitation.
CISA's SSVC assessment in the CVE record lists exploitation as poc.
- How severe?
- 9.3 Critical
CVSS v4.0 base score, given by the CNA
- What should I do?
CISA has set no required action, because the vulnerability is not in KEV.
- Which versions are affected?
Affected
- from a3f0fa1501d4 to before ee03eff016e0
Source: CISA KEV 2026.10.29, as of ; VulnCheck KEV, as of ; FIRST EPSS, as of ; CVE List, as of . About the data.
Description
VestaCP Debian Installer Malicious Backdoor Supply Chain Compromise
VestaCP commit a3f0fa1 (2018-05-31) up to commit ee03eff (2018-06-13) contain embedded malicious code that resulted in a supply-chain compromise. New installations created from the compromised installer since at least May 2018 were subject to installation of Linux/ChachaDDoS, a multi-stage DDoS bot that uses Lua for second- and third-stage components. The compromise leaked administrative credentials (base64-encoded admin password and server domain) to an external URL during installation and/or resulted in the installer dropping and executing a DDoS malware payload under local system privileges. Compromised servers were subsequently observed participating in large-scale DDoS activity. Vesta acknowledged exploitation in the wild in October 2018.
Source: CVE List, as of . About the data.
What to do
Advisories and patches
This summary is based on the CVE record as of . Check the vendor's advisory before you act: affected versions and fixes can change.
Affected products and versions
Versions by product, as listed in the CVE record (1 product)
| Status | Versions |
|---|---|
| Affected | from a3f0fa1501d4 to before ee03eff016e0 |
Versions not listed are: unaffected.
Source: CVE List, as of . About the data.
Weakness
CWE-506, 1 CAPEC
- CWE-506: Embedded Malicious Code
Attack patterns (CAPEC)
- CAPEC-441: Malicious Logic Insertion
CWE and CAPEC are maintained by MITRE; the entries are those named in the CVE record.
Timeline
| Date | Event |
|---|---|
| CVE record published | |
| CVE record last updated |