CVE-2017-12674 in ImageMagick
Summary
by MITRE
In ImageMagick 7.0.6-2, a CPU exhaustion vulnerability was found in the function ReadPDBImage in coders/pdb.c, which allows attackers to cause a denial of service.
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Analysis
by VulDB Data Team • 12/15/2022
The vulnerability identified as CVE-2017-12674 represents a critical CPU exhaustion flaw within ImageMagick's processing pipeline, specifically affecting version 7.0.6-2. This issue manifests in the ReadPDBImage function located within the coders/pdb.c source file, where attackers can exploit malformed or maliciously crafted PDB (Program Database) files to trigger excessive CPU resource consumption. The vulnerability operates by causing the image processing library to enter into computationally intensive operations that consume disproportionate system resources, effectively leading to denial of service conditions.
The technical implementation of this vulnerability stems from inadequate input validation and resource management within the PDB file parser. When ImageMagick attempts to process a specially crafted PDB file, the ReadPDBImage function fails to properly handle malformed data structures, causing the library to perform excessive iterations or recursive operations that consume CPU cycles at an unsustainable rate. This type of vulnerability falls under CWE-400, which categorizes improper resource exhaustion issues, and specifically aligns with the broader category of denial of service vulnerabilities that target computational resources rather than network bandwidth or memory allocation.
From an operational perspective, this vulnerability poses significant risks to systems that process untrusted image files, particularly in web applications, content management systems, and file processing services that utilize ImageMagick as their underlying image manipulation library. Attackers can exploit this weakness by uploading or submitting PDB files that trigger the CPU exhaustion behavior, potentially causing system slowdowns, application crashes, or complete service unavailability. The impact extends beyond simple denial of service as it can be leveraged in distributed denial of service attacks where multiple vulnerable systems are simultaneously targeted, amplifying the overall network disruption potential.
The exploitation of CVE-2017-12674 aligns with several ATT&CK tactics including privilege escalation and denial of service through resource exhaustion. The vulnerability demonstrates how seemingly benign file format processing can become a vector for system compromise, particularly when libraries process untrusted inputs without adequate safeguards. Organizations using ImageMagick in production environments should consider implementing input validation layers, file type restrictions, and resource monitoring to detect and prevent exploitation attempts. The recommended mitigations include immediate patching to version 7.0.6-3 or later, implementing rate limiting for file processing operations, and establishing proper input sanitization protocols that validate file headers and structures before processing. Additionally, system administrators should monitor CPU utilization patterns and implement automated alerts when processing operations exceed normal resource consumption thresholds to detect potential exploitation attempts.