CVE-2017-14860 in Exiv2
Summary
by MITRE
There is a heap-based buffer over-read in the Exiv2::Jp2Image::readMetadata function of jp2image.cpp in Exiv2 0.26. A Crafted input will lead to a denial of service attack.
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Analysis
by VulDB Data Team • 11/20/2019
The vulnerability identified as CVE-2017-14860 represents a critical heap-based buffer over-read flaw within the Exiv2 image processing library version 0.26. This issue specifically affects the Exiv2::Jp2Image::readMetadata function located in the jp2image.cpp source file, which is responsible for parsing and extracting metadata from JPEG 2000 image files. The flaw occurs when the library processes malformed or crafted JPEG 2000 input files that contain specially constructed metadata structures, leading to improper memory access patterns that exceed the allocated buffer boundaries. Such buffer over-read conditions can result in unpredictable behavior and system instability, making this vulnerability particularly dangerous in environments where Exiv2 is used for image processing and metadata extraction.
The technical exploitation of this vulnerability requires an attacker to craft a malicious JPEG 2000 file with malformed metadata fields that trigger the buffer over-read condition during the readMetadata function execution. When the Exiv2 library attempts to parse these crafted inputs, it accesses memory locations beyond the intended buffer limits, potentially reading uninitialized data from adjacent memory regions. This behavior can lead to information disclosure, application crashes, and ultimately denial of service conditions where legitimate users cannot process valid JPEG 2000 images through applications that rely on Exiv2 for metadata handling. The vulnerability falls under the CWE-125 weakness category, which specifically addresses out-of-bounds read conditions in software implementations.
From an operational perspective, this vulnerability poses significant risks to applications and systems that utilize Exiv2 for image metadata processing, including digital asset management systems, photo editing software, content management platforms, and security scanning tools. The denial of service impact can disrupt legitimate workflows and potentially enable attackers to cause system unavailability, especially when the vulnerable library is used in server applications or automated processing pipelines. The vulnerability demonstrates how seemingly benign image file processing can become a vector for system compromise, highlighting the importance of robust input validation and memory safety practices in multimedia processing libraries. Security professionals should consider this vulnerability in the context of ATT&CK technique T1203, which involves the use of malformed files to trigger memory corruption and system instability.
The recommended mitigation strategies for CVE-2017-14860 include immediate deployment of Exiv2 version 0.27 or later, which contains the necessary patches to address the buffer over-read condition. Organizations should also implement input validation measures that sanitize JPEG 2000 files before processing them through Exiv2, including file format verification and metadata structure validation. Additionally, system administrators should consider implementing application sandboxing or containerization techniques to limit the potential impact of successful exploitation attempts. Regular security assessments and vulnerability scanning should be conducted to identify other potential issues within the Exiv2 library or dependent applications that might be susceptible to similar memory corruption vulnerabilities. The fix implemented in Exiv2 0.27 addresses the root cause by introducing proper bounds checking and memory validation mechanisms within the readMetadata function to prevent unauthorized memory access patterns.