CVE-2012-2771 in FFmpeg
Summary
by MITRE
Unspecified vulnerability in FFmpeg before 0.10.3 has unknown impact and attack vectors, a different vulnerability than CVE-2012-2773, CVE-2012-2778, CVE-2012-2780, and CVE-2012-2781.
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Analysis
by VulDB Data Team • 05/17/2021
The vulnerability identified as CVE-2012-2771 represents a significant security flaw within the FFmpeg multimedia framework library that was prevalent in versions prior to 0.10.3. This issue falls under the broader category of multimedia processing vulnerabilities that can potentially compromise systems through malicious media file manipulation. FFmpeg serves as a comprehensive multimedia framework that handles audio and video encoding, decoding, and processing across numerous platforms and applications, making it a critical component in digital media infrastructure. The vulnerability's classification as unspecified indicates that the precise nature of the flaw was not fully disclosed in the initial reporting, which is common with certain types of memory corruption or logic errors that may not be immediately apparent during initial analysis.
The technical nature of this vulnerability stems from the way FFmpeg processes certain media files, particularly those with malformed or specially crafted headers and data structures. Such flaws typically manifest as buffer overflows, integer overflows, or memory corruption issues that occur during the parsing of media containers or streams. These vulnerabilities can be exploited through various attack vectors including but not limited to maliciously crafted video files, audio files, or multimedia containers that are processed by applications utilizing the vulnerable FFmpeg library. The unspecified nature of the impact suggests that the vulnerability could potentially allow for arbitrary code execution, denial of service conditions, or other security breaches depending on the specific context in which the library is used.
The operational impact of CVE-2012-2771 extends far beyond simple technical concerns as it affects a widely deployed multimedia processing library that forms the backbone of countless applications and services. Systems utilizing vulnerable versions of FFmpeg may be at risk of unauthorized code execution when processing media files, which could lead to complete system compromise or unauthorized access to sensitive data. This vulnerability particularly affects applications such as media players, content management systems, streaming platforms, and any software that relies on FFmpeg for multimedia processing. The attack vectors for this vulnerability are diverse and can include web-based exploitation, file sharing platforms, or any scenario where users might be induced to process malicious media content through applications using the affected library.
Security mitigations for this vulnerability primarily involve upgrading to FFmpeg version 0.10.3 or later, which contains the necessary patches to address the underlying flaw. Organizations should conduct comprehensive vulnerability assessments to identify all systems and applications that utilize vulnerable versions of FFmpeg, particularly those that process user-uploaded media content or handle untrusted multimedia files. The vulnerability's classification aligns with CWE-121, which describes heap-based buffer overflow conditions, and may also relate to CWE-125, which covers out-of-bounds read conditions. From an ATT&CK framework perspective, this vulnerability could be leveraged through techniques such as T1203, which involves exploiting software vulnerabilities, and potentially T1059, where adversaries might use command injection techniques if successful exploitation leads to code execution. System administrators should implement proper input validation and sanitization measures for all media processing workflows, while also monitoring for unusual network activity or system behavior that might indicate exploitation attempts.