CVE-2014-9807 in ImageMagick
Summary
by MITRE
The pdb coder in ImageMagick allows remote attackers to cause a denial of service (double free) via unspecified vectors.
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Analysis
by VulDB Data Team • 10/31/2024
The CVE-2014-9807 vulnerability resides within ImageMagick's pdb coder component, representing a critical denial of service weakness that enables remote attackers to trigger a double free condition. This flaw specifically affects the Portable Document Binary format handling functionality within the widely-used image processing library. The vulnerability manifests when the pdb coder processes malformed or specially crafted input files, leading to memory management errors that can crash applications utilizing ImageMagick. The double free condition occurs when the same memory block is freed twice, potentially causing memory corruption and system instability. This vulnerability impacts numerous applications and systems that depend on ImageMagick for image processing operations, including web applications, content management systems, and server-side image handling services.
The technical implementation of this vulnerability stems from improper memory management within the pdb coder's parsing logic. When processing certain binary structures in pdb files, the code fails to properly track memory allocations and deallocations, resulting in scenarios where memory blocks are freed multiple times. This type of vulnerability falls under the CWE-415 category of double free conditions, which represents a well-known class of memory safety issues that can lead to arbitrary code execution or system crashes. The flaw exists in the memory management routines that handle the parsing of portable document binary data structures, where insufficient validation of input parameters leads to improper deallocation sequences. Attackers can exploit this by crafting malicious pdb files that, when processed by ImageMagick, trigger the double free condition in the underlying memory allocator.
The operational impact of CVE-2014-9807 extends beyond simple service disruption to potentially compromise entire application stacks that rely on ImageMagick for image processing. Web applications vulnerable to this attack can experience complete service outages when malicious users upload or process specially crafted pdb files, leading to denial of service conditions that affect legitimate users. The vulnerability is particularly dangerous in multi-tenant environments or public-facing applications where users can upload arbitrary files, as it allows attackers to systematically crash application servers and potentially exhaust system resources. Systems utilizing ImageMagick for automated image processing workflows, including those in cloud environments or distributed systems, face significant risk from this vulnerability, as a single malicious file can cause cascading failures across multiple services. The attack vector is particularly insidious because it requires no authentication or special privileges, making it a prime target for automated exploitation tools.
Mitigation strategies for CVE-2014-9807 should prioritize immediate patching of affected ImageMagick installations, as the vulnerability has been addressed in subsequent releases. Organizations should implement strict file validation and sanitization measures, particularly for user-uploaded content, to prevent processing of untrusted pdb files. Network-level controls including firewalls and intrusion detection systems can be configured to block or quarantine suspicious file types, while application-level restrictions should limit the scope of image processing capabilities to reduce attack surface. System administrators should consider implementing memory protection mechanisms such as address space layout randomization and stack canaries to mitigate potential exploitation attempts. The vulnerability demonstrates the importance of proper memory management practices and highlights the need for regular security assessments of third-party libraries. Organizations should also implement monitoring and alerting systems to detect unusual application behavior that might indicate exploitation attempts, while maintaining up-to-date threat intelligence to track related attacks targeting similar vulnerabilities in image processing libraries. The remediation process should include comprehensive testing of patched systems to ensure that the fix does not introduce compatibility issues with existing applications.