CVE-2017-9404 in LibTIFF
Summary
by MITRE
In LibTIFF 4.0.7, a memory leak vulnerability was found in the function OJPEGReadHeaderInfoSecTablesQTable in tif_ojpeg.c, which allows attackers to cause a denial of service via a crafted file.
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Analysis
by VulDB Data Team • 10/13/2019
The vulnerability identified as CVE-2017-9404 represents a critical memory leak flaw within the LibTIFF 4.0.7 library that specifically affects the OJPEGReadHeaderInfoSecTablesQTable function located in the tif_ojpeg.c source file. This memory leak occurs during the processing of OpenJPEG-compressed TIFF image files, where the library fails to properly release allocated memory resources when encountering malformed or crafted input files. The flaw stems from inadequate memory management practices within the decompression routine that handles quantization tables and secondary table information in OpenJPEG format files. Attackers can exploit this vulnerability by crafting malicious TIFF files that trigger the memory leak during parsing operations, leading to progressive memory consumption that eventually exhausts available system resources.
The technical implementation of this vulnerability demonstrates a classic memory management error where allocated memory blocks are not properly deallocated before function exit or when error conditions occur. The OJPEGReadHeaderInfoSecTablesQTable function processes quantization tables and secondary tables that are part of the OpenJPEG compression standard used within TIFF files, but fails to maintain proper memory cleanup semantics. This type of flaw falls under the CWE-401 category of "Improper Release of Memory Before Removing Last Reference" and represents a direct violation of proper resource management principles. The vulnerability is particularly concerning because it operates at the library level, meaning that any application relying on LibTIFF for image processing becomes susceptible to denial of service attacks through simple file manipulation.
The operational impact of CVE-2017-9404 extends beyond simple resource exhaustion to potentially compromise entire systems that depend on TIFF image processing capabilities. When exploited, this vulnerability can cause applications to consume increasing amounts of memory over time, leading to system instability, application crashes, and ultimately complete denial of service for legitimate users. The attack vector is particularly insidious because it requires no special privileges or complex exploitation techniques - simply processing a malicious file is sufficient to trigger the memory leak. Systems that process untrusted TIFF images, such as web applications, document management systems, and image processing servers, become vulnerable to this attack. The vulnerability aligns with ATT&CK technique T1499.004 which covers "File System Wipe" through resource exhaustion, though in this case the exhaustion occurs through memory rather than disk space.
Mitigation strategies for CVE-2017-9404 require immediate patching of affected LibTIFF installations to version 4.0.8 or later, which contains the necessary memory management fixes. Organizations should implement comprehensive input validation and sanitization measures for all TIFF file processing workflows, including implementing file size limits and timeout mechanisms to prevent prolonged memory consumption. Network-based defenses can include implementing file type restrictions and content inspection to prevent malicious TIFF files from reaching vulnerable systems. Additionally, system administrators should monitor memory usage patterns and implement automated alerting for unusual memory consumption that could indicate exploitation attempts. The fix implemented in LibTIFF 4.0.8 specifically addresses the memory leak by ensuring proper deallocation of allocated memory blocks in the affected function, thereby preventing the progressive memory consumption that led to denial of service conditions. Security teams should also consider implementing sandboxing mechanisms for image processing operations to contain potential impacts even if exploitation occurs.