# CVE-1999-1309: Sendmail privilege escalation via large debug value

Source: https://junglewise.ai/threats/cve-1999-1309-sendmail-privilege-escalation-via-large-debug-value  
Publisher: Junglewise Threat Intelligence, https://junglewise.ai/threats  
Published: 1996-08-30. Updated: 2026-05-10  
License: CC BY 4.0 with a link back

CVE-1999-1309 · Severity: high · CVSS 7.2 · Published 1996-08-30

Sendmail, a widely used mail transfer agent for routing and delivering email, contains a vulnerability that allows a local user to take full control of the system. By providing a specially crafted large value to the program's debugging feature, an attacker can bypass security restrictions and gain administrative (root) privileges. This could lead to a complete compromise of the server, including the ability to access any data or disrupt email services.

## Quick answers

**Is CVE-1999-1309 exploited in the wild?** No. Junglewise Threat Intelligence has no report of CVE-1999-1309 being exploited in the wild.

**How severe is CVE-1999-1309?** High severity, with a CVSS score of 7.2, published 30 August 1996.

**Which products and versions are affected?** Sendmail Sendmail before 8.6.7.

**Is there a fix for CVE-1999-1309?** No fixed version is recorded yet. Check the vendor's advisory in the references below. If you run it, Junglewise drafts a mitigation that fits your setup and applies it once you approve, with senior security engineers behind it.

**How is CVE-1999-1309 attacked?** It is attacked with local access, in an operating system.

**Am I affected by CVE-1999-1309?** Check whether anything you run is named in the advisory. Junglewise does that check for you around the clock: connect your code, cloud and domains, and it matches new vulnerabilities like this one against what you actually run and tells you when one reaches you.

## Technical details

A vulnerability exists in Sendmail versions prior to 8.6.7 due to improper handling of the debug (-d) command line option. A local attacker can provide an excessively large value to this parameter, leading to a memory corruption or buffer overflow condition. Because Sendmail often runs with elevated privileges (setuid root) to manage mail delivery, this flaw allows a non-privileged local user to execute arbitrary code with root privileges. The issue is resolved in Sendmail version 8.6.7.

## Affected products

- Sendmail Sendmail before 8.6.7

## Timeline

- 1994-01-01: disclosed: Vulnerability discussed in Bugtraq and CERT advisories in 1994
- 1996-08-30: advisory: NVD publication date

## References

- [http://www.cert.org/advisories/CA-94.12.sendmail.vulnerabilities](http://www.cert.org/advisories/CA-94.12.sendmail.vulnerabilities)
- [http://www.dataguard.no/bugtraq/1994_1/0040.html](http://www.dataguard.no/bugtraq/1994_1/0040.html)
- [http://www.dataguard.no/bugtraq/1994_1/0042.html](http://www.dataguard.no/bugtraq/1994_1/0042.html)
- [http://www.dataguard.no/bugtraq/1994_1/0043.html](http://www.dataguard.no/bugtraq/1994_1/0043.html)
- [http://www.dataguard.no/bugtraq/1994_1/0048.html](http://www.dataguard.no/bugtraq/1994_1/0048.html)
- [http://www.dataguard.no/bugtraq/1994_1/0078.html](http://www.dataguard.no/bugtraq/1994_1/0078.html)
- [https://exchange.xforce.ibmcloud.com/vulnerabilities/7155](https://exchange.xforce.ibmcloud.com/vulnerabilities/7155)