CVE-2017-9440 in ImageMagick
Summary
by MITRE
In ImageMagick 7.0.5-5, a memory leak was found in the function ReadPSDChannel in coders/psd.c, which allows attackers to cause a denial of service via a crafted file.
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Analysis
by VulDB Data Team • 12/07/2022
The vulnerability identified as CVE-2017-9440 represents a critical memory leak flaw within ImageMagick's PSD file processing functionality. This issue specifically affects ImageMagick version 7.0.5-5 and manifests within the ReadPSDChannel function located in the coders/psd.c source file. The memory leak occurs when processing specially crafted PSD (Photoshop Document) files, creating a scenario where the application fails to properly release allocated memory resources during the parsing process. This flaw falls under the category of memory management errors and can be classified as CWE-401, which represents "Improper Release of Memory Before Removing Last Reference" according to the Common Weakness Enumeration standards.
The operational impact of this vulnerability extends beyond simple resource consumption, as it creates a persistent memory exhaustion condition that can lead to system instability and denial of service attacks. When an attacker submits a maliciously constructed PSD file to an application utilizing ImageMagick for image processing, the ReadPSDChannel function enters an infinite loop of memory allocation without corresponding deallocation, causing progressive memory consumption that can eventually exhaust available system resources. This behavior directly maps to the ATT&CK technique T1499.004, which involves "Toggle System Hardening" through resource exhaustion attacks, and demonstrates how seemingly benign file processing operations can become vectors for system compromise.
The vulnerability's exploitability is particularly concerning given ImageMagick's widespread adoption across various platforms and applications, including web servers, content management systems, and image processing pipelines. Attackers can leverage this flaw by uploading or processing malicious PSD files through any application that utilizes ImageMagick's image processing capabilities, making it a significant threat in environments where user-uploaded content is processed. The memory leak specifically affects the PSD file format parsing routine, which handles the complex structure of Photoshop documents including multiple channels, layers, and metadata elements, creating a potential attack surface that can be exploited through malformed channel data within the PSD file structure.
Mitigation strategies for CVE-2017-9440 should prioritize immediate software updates to versions that contain patches addressing the memory leak in the ReadPSDChannel function. Organizations should implement input validation and file type checking mechanisms to prevent processing of untrusted PSD files, particularly in web-facing applications where user uploads are common. Additionally, deployment of intrusion detection systems capable of identifying abnormal memory consumption patterns and implementing resource limits on image processing services can help contain the impact of exploitation attempts. The fix typically involves proper memory management practices including ensuring that allocated memory is released upon function completion or upon encountering error conditions, thereby preventing the accumulation of unreleased memory blocks that lead to the denial of service condition.