CVE-2017-11141 in ImageMagick
Summary
by MITRE
The ReadMATImage function in coders\mat.c in ImageMagick 7.0.5-6 has a memory leak vulnerability that can cause memory exhaustion via a crafted MAT file, related to incorrect ordering of a SetImageExtent call.
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Analysis
by VulDB Data Team • 12/12/2022
The vulnerability identified as CVE-2017-11141 resides within ImageMagick's MAT file format handling mechanism, specifically in the ReadMATImage function located in coders\mat.c. This issue manifests as a memory leak that can be exploited through the careful crafting of MAT files, ultimately leading to memory exhaustion conditions that compromise system stability and availability. The flaw represents a critical weakness in the image processing library's resource management, where improper handling of memory allocation during file parsing creates persistent memory consumption patterns that cannot be properly reclaimed.
The technical root cause of this vulnerability stems from an incorrect ordering of operations within the ReadMATImage function, specifically involving the SetImageExtent call sequence. When processing maliciously crafted MAT files, the function fails to properly manage memory allocation and deallocation cycles, resulting in allocated memory blocks that remain unreleased even after the image processing operation should have completed. This improper resource management creates a memory leak condition where each processed malicious file contributes to cumulative memory consumption, eventually exhausting available system resources and potentially causing denial of service scenarios.
The operational impact of CVE-2017-11141 extends beyond simple memory consumption, as it can be leveraged in various attack scenarios including denial of service attacks against systems processing image files. Systems that rely on ImageMagick for image handling, particularly web applications, content management systems, and file processing services, become vulnerable to exploitation. Attackers can craft MAT files designed to trigger the memory leak condition, causing progressive memory consumption that can eventually crash applications or render systems unresponsive. This vulnerability directly maps to CWE-401, which describes improper handling of memory allocation and deallocation, and aligns with ATT&CK technique T1499.004 for network denial of service attacks through resource exhaustion.
Mitigation strategies for this vulnerability require immediate patching of ImageMagick installations to version 7.0.5-7 or later, which contains the necessary fixes for proper memory management. Additionally, administrators should implement input validation measures that restrict file type processing and employ sandboxing techniques to isolate image processing operations. Network-level protections can include implementing file type filtering and limiting the size of processed files to reduce the impact of potential exploitation. The vulnerability demonstrates the importance of proper resource management in security-critical software components and highlights the need for comprehensive testing of memory handling operations in image processing libraries that are widely deployed across enterprise environments.