CVE-2018-8810 in radare2
Summary
by MITRE
In radare2 2.4.0, there is a heap-based buffer over-read in the get_ivar_list_t function of mach0_classes.c. Remote attackers could leverage this vulnerability to cause a denial of service via a crafted Mach-O file.
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Analysis
by VulDB Data Team • 02/22/2023
The vulnerability identified as CVE-2018-8810 represents a critical heap-based buffer over-read flaw within the radare2 reverse engineering framework version 2.4.0. This issue specifically affects the get_ivar_list_t function located in the mach0_classes.c source file, which is responsible for parsing Mach-O binary formats commonly used on macOS and iOS systems. The flaw occurs when the software processes malformed or specially crafted Mach-O files that contain improperly structured instance variable lists, leading to memory access violations beyond the allocated buffer boundaries.
The technical nature of this vulnerability stems from insufficient input validation and boundary checking within the Mach-O parser component of radare2. When the get_ivar_list_t function attempts to read instance variable metadata from a malformed binary, it fails to properly verify array bounds or validate the structure of the incoming data. This oversight allows attackers to craft malicious Mach-O files that trigger memory corruption during the parsing process, specifically causing the application to read memory locations that were not allocated for the intended data structure. The vulnerability is classified under CWE-125 as an out-of-bounds read, which can result in unpredictable behavior and system instability.
From an operational perspective, this vulnerability poses significant risks to security professionals and researchers who rely on radare2 for malware analysis, binary reverse engineering, and software security assessments. Remote attackers can exploit this flaw by delivering crafted Mach-O files to systems running vulnerable versions of radare2, potentially causing the application to crash or exhibit undefined behavior. The denial of service impact means that legitimate analysis workflows could be disrupted, forcing analysts to restart their tools and potentially lose valuable debugging sessions or analysis progress. This vulnerability particularly affects environments where automated binary analysis is performed, as the tool may crash during routine processing of suspicious files.
The exploitation of this vulnerability aligns with ATT&CK technique T1059.007 for execution through scripting languages, as attackers could leverage the instability to disrupt automated analysis pipelines. Security teams using radare2 in production environments face potential operational disruption when encountering malicious binaries, as the tool becomes unreliable for critical security operations. The vulnerability demonstrates the importance of proper memory management and input validation in security tools, as these applications often process untrusted data from potentially malicious sources. Organizations should implement immediate mitigation strategies including updating to patched versions of radare2, implementing sandboxed execution environments for binary analysis, and establishing robust input validation procedures for all binary processing activities.
This vulnerability highlights the broader challenge of maintaining memory safety in complex reverse engineering tools that must parse numerous binary formats while maintaining performance and compatibility. The flaw serves as a reminder of the critical need for comprehensive testing and security reviews of security tools themselves, as these applications can become attack vectors when they contain exploitable code. The impact extends beyond simple denial of service, as the instability could potentially be leveraged in more sophisticated attacks if combined with other vulnerabilities in the analysis environment.