Vulnerabilities

Vulnerability · CVE-2017-4941

VMware ESXi (6.0 before ESXi600-201711101-SG, 5.5 ESXi550-201709101-SG), Workstation (12.x before 12.5.8), and Fusion (8.x before 8.5.9) contain a vulnerability that c…

Published Dec 20, 2017 · catalog updated Jun 17, 2026 · the affected product

Last checked Nov 7, 2026. A connected source was read within the last 7 days.

Check if you run it

No confirmed exploitation is on record for CVE-2017-4941. EPSS is 3.16%. Act only if a listed version of the affected product is installed.

Gaps on this record

  • No plain product name is stored. The page cannot tell you which product to check.
  • No vendor fix or required action is stored. Compare the linked advisory before you change production.

Same product and reporting

Severity
High8.8
Known exploitation
Not in CISA/VulnCheck KEV
EPSS
3.16%
Remediation
Version ranges on file
Affected products
cpe vmware/esxi · cpe vmware/fusion · cpe vmware/workstation

VMware ESXi (6.0 before ESXi600-201711101-SG, 5.5 ESXi550-201709101-SG), Workstation (12.x before 12.5.8), and Fusion (8.x before 8.5.9) contain a vulnerability that could allow an authenticated VNC session to cause a stack overflow via a specific set of VNC packets. Successful exploitation of this issue could result in remote code execution in a virtual machine via the authenticated VNC session. Note: In order for exploitation to be possible in ESXi, VNC must be manually enabled in a virtual machine's .vmx configuration file. In addition, ESXi must be configured to allow VNC traffic through the built-in firewall.

Are you affected?

Enter the version you run. The result uses only the ranges stored on this record.

The check returns affected, not affected, or incomplete. It does not guess a version that is missing from the record.

  • cpe vmware/esxi5.5
  • cpe vmware/esxi6.0
  • cpe vmware/fusion< 8.5.9
  • cpe vmware/workstation< 12.5.8

How to fix CVE-2017-4941

What to do

Three questions, each answered from this record only. Confirm the vendor advisory before you patch.

Should you patch?

No confirmed exploitation is on record for CVE-2017-4941. EPSS is 3.16%. Act only if a listed version of the affected product is installed.

Which versions are affected?

Compare what you have installed with 5.5, 6.0, < 8.5.9, < 12.5.8. Compare the installed version with the linked vendor advisory before you change production.

What should an analyst verify?

CWE-119: Buffer Overflow. EPSS 3.16%. There is no CISA KEV listing. No Exploit-DB or Metasploit reference is linked. Use the source links for the original advisory.

Technology hubs

Code

The project this record applies to. Exploit listings stay in References.

No public source repository is identified for this product.

Timeline

Detection, updates, and resolution for this record.

  1. Dec 20, 2017 · Monitored products — critical

    Detected

    VMware ESXi (6.0 before ESXi600-201711101-SG, 5.5 ESXi550-201709101-SG), Workstation (12.x before 12.5.8), and Fusion (8.x before 8.5.9) contain a vulnerability that could allow an authenticated VNC session to cause a stack overflow via a specific set of VNC packets. Successful exploitation of this issue could result in remote code execution in a virtual machine via the authenticated VNC session.

  2. Jun 17, 2026 · Monitored products — critical

    Updated

    VMware ESXi (6.0 before ESXi600-201711101-SG, 5.5 ESXi550-201709101-SG), Workstation (12.x before 12.5.8), and Fusion (8.x before 8.5.9) contain a vulnerability that could allow an authenticated VNC session to cause a stack overflow via a specific set of VNC packets. Successful exploitation of this issue could result in remote code execution in a virtual machine via the authenticated VNC session.

Sources

  • CVE.orgVulnerability recordCVE-2017-4941

    Official CVE identifier

    cve.org
  • Monitored products — criticalVendor advisoryCVE-2017-4941

    VMware ESXi (6.0 before ESXi600-201711101-SG, 5.5 ESXi550-201709101-SG), Workstation (12.x before 12.5.8), and Fusion (8.x before 8.5.9) contain a vulnerability that could allow an authenticated VNC session to cause a stack overflow via a specific set of VNC packets. Successful exploitation of this issue could result in remote code execution in a virtual machine via the authenticated VNC session.

    nvd.nist.gov

References

Freshness

Last verified in this catalog Nov 7, 2026. Significant claims (KEV, EPSS, CVSS, affected ranges) come from the source rows above — open the original publisher for the authoritative advisory.

  • Monitored products — criticalNov 4, 2026
  • CVE.orgNov 2, 2026