CVE-2015-7313 in LibTIFF
Summary
by MITRE
LibTIFF allows remote attackers to cause a denial of service (memory consumption and crash) via a crafted tiff file.
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Analysis
by VulDB Data Team • 08/26/2025
The vulnerability identified as CVE-2015-7313 affects the LibTIFF library, a widely used software component for handling Tagged Image File Format files across numerous operating systems and applications. This security flaw represents a classic denial of service vulnerability that can be exploited by remote attackers through the careful crafting of malicious TIFF image files. The vulnerability resides in the library's insufficient input validation mechanisms when processing malformed TIFF data structures, specifically in how it handles certain header fields and metadata sequences. When a vulnerable application attempts to read or process the crafted TIFF file, the LibTIFF library enters an infinite loop or allocates excessive memory resources, leading to system resource exhaustion and eventual application crash.
The technical nature of this vulnerability aligns with CWE-400, which categorizes it as an "Uncontrolled Resource Consumption" or "Resource Exhaustion" flaw. The vulnerability operates by exploiting the library's failure to properly validate the size parameters within TIFF file headers, particularly in the IFD (Image File Directory) structure. Attackers can construct TIFF files containing malformed offset values or recursive data structures that cause the parser to consume excessive memory or enter infinite processing loops. This behavior manifests as either memory allocation exhaustion that prevents the application from functioning properly or CPU resource depletion through endless iteration over malformed data structures. The vulnerability affects any software that relies on LibTIFF for image processing, including web servers, image editing applications, and document management systems.
The operational impact of CVE-2015-7313 extends beyond simple service disruption to potentially enable more sophisticated attack vectors within networked environments. When exploited, the vulnerability can be leveraged to perform resource exhaustion attacks against web applications that process user-uploaded TIFF images, leading to system instability and potential denial of service for legitimate users. The vulnerability's remote exploitability means that attackers can trigger the flaw without requiring local access to the target system, making it particularly dangerous in web-facing applications. Organizations using vulnerable versions of LibTIFF may experience cascading failures if multiple applications rely on the same library instance, potentially affecting entire application stacks. The vulnerability also represents a significant concern for cloud environments and shared hosting platforms where multiple applications may be running on the same infrastructure.
Mitigation strategies for this vulnerability require immediate patching of affected LibTIFF installations and implementation of proper input validation measures within applications. System administrators should prioritize updating to LibTIFF versions that contain the fix for this vulnerability, typically those released after the vulnerability disclosure. Additionally, organizations should implement strict file validation mechanisms that check TIFF file headers and metadata before processing, particularly for user-uploaded content. Network-level mitigations such as implementing file type restrictions and deploying web application firewalls can provide additional protection layers. The vulnerability's characteristics also make it suitable for detection through behavioral monitoring systems that can identify unusual memory consumption patterns or process termination events. Security teams should also consider implementing automated patch management processes to ensure rapid deployment of security updates across all affected systems. From an ATT&CK framework perspective, this vulnerability maps to the T1499.004 technique for network denial of service and T1059.007 for command and scripting interpreter execution, as attackers may attempt to leverage the service disruption for further exploitation attempts.