CVE-2010-4385 in RealPlayer
Summary
by MITRE
Integer overflow in RealNetworks RealPlayer 11.0 through 11.1, RealPlayer SP 1.0 through 1.1.4, RealPlayer Enterprise 2.1.2, Linux RealPlayer 11.0.2.1744, and possibly HelixPlayer 1.0.6 and other versions, allows remote attackers to have an unspecified impact via crafted frame dimensions in an SIPR stream.
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Analysis
by VulDB Data Team • 10/06/2021
The vulnerability identified as CVE-2010-4385 represents a critical integer overflow flaw affecting multiple versions of RealNetworks RealPlayer software across different platforms and operating systems. This security weakness exists within the media processing component responsible for handling SIPR (Speech Interchange File Format) streams, which are commonly used for audio transmission in real-time communication scenarios. The vulnerability specifically manifests when the application processes crafted frame dimensions within these SIPR streams, creating conditions where integer arithmetic operations exceed their maximum representable values. The affected software versions include RealPlayer 11.0 through 11.1, RealPlayer SP 1.0 through 1.1.4, RealPlayer Enterprise 2.1.2, Linux RealPlayer 11.0.2.1744, and potentially HelixPlayer 1.0.6, indicating this flaw has persisted across various iterations and deployment scenarios. The integer overflow condition creates a potential exploitation vector that could allow remote attackers to manipulate memory allocation and processing behaviors within the application.
The technical implementation of this vulnerability stems from insufficient input validation and arithmetic overflow protection mechanisms within the SIPR stream parser. When processing maliciously crafted frame dimensions, the application's handling of integer values can cause them to wrap around to negative values or exceed maximum bounds, leading to unpredictable behavior in memory management and buffer allocation. This type of vulnerability aligns with CWE-190, which specifically addresses integer overflow and underflow conditions, and represents a classic example of how improper integer handling can lead to arbitrary code execution or system instability. The flaw operates at the intersection of multimedia processing and memory safety, where the parser's failure to validate frame dimension parameters creates exploitable conditions that could be leveraged by attackers to disrupt normal application functionality or potentially execute malicious code.
The operational impact of CVE-2010-4385 extends beyond simple denial of service scenarios, as the integer overflow condition could potentially enable remote code execution or system compromise. Attackers exploiting this vulnerability could craft malicious SIPR streams that, when processed by vulnerable RealPlayer installations, would cause memory corruption and unpredictable application behavior. The remote attack vector means that users could be compromised simply by opening or playing media content from untrusted sources, making this vulnerability particularly dangerous in environments where users frequently encounter multimedia content from unknown or untrusted sources. The broad range of affected versions suggests this vulnerability has been present for an extended period, potentially giving attackers ample opportunity to develop and deploy exploitation techniques against systems running these software versions.
Mitigation strategies for this vulnerability require immediate remediation through software updates and patches provided by RealNetworks, as well as network-level controls to prevent the delivery of potentially malicious SIPR streams. Organizations should prioritize updating all affected RealPlayer installations to the latest available versions that contain fixes for this integer overflow condition. Additionally, network administrators should implement content filtering measures to block or inspect SIPR streams from untrusted sources, particularly in environments where users may encounter multimedia content from external sources. The vulnerability's classification under ATT&CK technique T1203, which covers exploitation of remote services, emphasizes the need for comprehensive network security controls beyond just software patching. Security monitoring should focus on detecting unusual media processing behavior or memory allocation patterns that could indicate exploitation attempts, while user education about avoiding untrusted multimedia content remains essential for overall security posture protection.