CVE-2007-6745 in ClamAV
Summary
by MITRE
clamav 0.91.2 suffers from a floating point exception when using ScanOLE2.
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Analysis
by VulDB Data Team • 02/05/2024
ClamAV version 0.91.2 contains a critical floating point exception vulnerability that manifests when processing OLE2 (Object Linking and Embedding) formatted files through the ScanOLE2 functionality. This vulnerability represents a classic software error condition where the application fails to properly handle mathematical operations involving floating point numbers, leading to unexpected program termination or system instability. The issue specifically occurs within the OLE2 scanning module, which is designed to analyze compound document formats commonly used in Microsoft Office applications and other software that employs OLE2 structures for data storage and linking.
The technical flaw stems from improper input validation and error handling within the ScanOLE2 component of ClamAV's scanning engine. When encountering malformed or specially crafted OLE2 files, the application attempts to perform floating point arithmetic operations that result in invalid mathematical operations such as division by zero or overflow conditions. This type of vulnerability falls under the CWE-191 category of Integer Underflow (Wrap or Wraparound) and can be classified as a floating point exception according to CWE-192. The vulnerability exists because the code does not adequately check for edge cases in the OLE2 file structure parsing process, particularly when dealing with corrupted or maliciously constructed compound document formats that contain unexpected numerical values or structures.
The operational impact of this vulnerability extends beyond simple application crashes, as it creates a potential denial of service condition that can be exploited by attackers to disrupt security scanning operations. In environments where ClamAV serves as a critical security component for email filtering, file system scanning, or network traffic analysis, such a vulnerability could allow adversaries to cause service interruptions that compromise the overall security posture. The floating point exception can lead to complete application termination, requiring system administrators to restart security services and potentially leaving systems temporarily unprotected. This vulnerability is particularly concerning in enterprise environments where automated scanning processes depend on ClamAV's stability and reliability for maintaining security controls.
Mitigation strategies for this vulnerability should focus on immediate patching to the latest stable version of ClamAV that contains the necessary code fixes for proper floating point exception handling. Organizations should implement regular update schedules to ensure all security software remains current with the latest vulnerability patches. Additionally, network administrators should consider implementing additional monitoring for unusual application behavior or service disruptions that might indicate exploitation attempts. The vulnerability demonstrates the importance of robust input validation and proper error handling in security applications, as highlighted by ATT&CK technique T1499.004 for Uninstall or Disable Security Tools and T1566.001 for Phishing with Malicious Attachments, where such vulnerabilities could be leveraged in targeted attacks against security infrastructure. System hardening measures including restricting file scanning permissions and implementing sandboxed environments for suspicious file analysis can provide additional protection layers against exploitation of this type of vulnerability.