CVE-2017-13737 in GraphicsMagick
Summary
by MITRE
There is an invalid free in the MagickFree function in magick/memory.c in GraphicsMagick 1.3.26 that will lead to a remote denial of service attack.
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Analysis
by VulDB Data Team • 12/27/2022
The vulnerability identified as CVE-2017-13737 represents a critical memory management flaw within GraphicsMagick version 1.3.26, specifically within the MagickFree function located in magick/memory.c. This issue manifests as an invalid free operation that occurs when the software attempts to release memory that has already been freed or is improperly allocated, creating a potential pathway for remote exploitation. The flaw resides in the core memory management routines of the graphics processing library, which is widely used for image manipulation and conversion tasks across various platforms and applications. When exploited, this vulnerability can cause the target system to crash or become unresponsive, effectively delivering a denial of service condition that impacts availability of the affected service.
The technical implementation of this vulnerability stems from improper handling of memory deallocation within the MagickFree function, which operates as part of GraphicsMagick's internal memory management subsystem. The invalid free operation typically occurs when the software maintains an incorrect tracking mechanism for allocated memory blocks or fails to properly validate memory pointers before attempting deallocation. This type of memory corruption vulnerability falls under the category of use-after-free or double-free conditions, which are commonly classified as CWE-415 and CWE-416 in the Common Weakness Enumeration framework. The vulnerability demonstrates characteristics aligned with the ATT&CK technique T1499.004 for network denial of service, where adversaries can manipulate system resources to cause service disruption.
The operational impact of CVE-2017-13737 extends beyond simple service disruption, as it can be exploited remotely through crafted image files or data streams that are processed by GraphicsMagick-based applications. This makes the vulnerability particularly dangerous in web applications, content management systems, or any service that accepts user-uploaded images or graphics files. Attackers can construct malicious image files that, when processed by vulnerable versions of GraphicsMagick, trigger the invalid free operation and subsequently cause the application to crash or hang. The remote exploitation capability means that systems processing untrusted image data are at risk, including web servers, image processing services, and any application that leverages GraphicsMagick for image manipulation. The vulnerability affects not just individual applications but entire ecosystems that depend on GraphicsMagick for their image processing capabilities, potentially causing cascading failures in interconnected systems.
Mitigation strategies for this vulnerability require immediate patching of GraphicsMagick installations to version 1.3.27 or later, which contains the necessary fixes to properly handle memory deallocation in the MagickFree function. Organizations should conduct comprehensive vulnerability assessments to identify all systems and applications that utilize GraphicsMagick, particularly those that process external or user-provided image data. Additional protective measures include implementing strict input validation for image files, deploying sandboxing mechanisms for image processing operations, and establishing robust monitoring for unusual application behavior that might indicate exploitation attempts. Security teams should also consider implementing network segmentation and access controls to limit exposure of vulnerable services, while maintaining detailed logging of image processing activities for forensic analysis purposes. The fix addresses the root cause by ensuring proper memory pointer validation and maintaining accurate allocation tracking throughout the memory management lifecycle, thereby preventing the invalid free operation that leads to the denial of service condition.