CVE-2019-12975 in ImageMagick
Summary
by MITRE
ImageMagick 7.0.8-34 has a memory leak vulnerability in the WriteDPXImage function in coders/dpx.c.
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Analysis
by VulDB Data Team • 10/08/2023
The vulnerability identified as CVE-2019-12975 represents a critical memory leak flaw within ImageMagick's DPX image format handling functionality. This issue specifically affects ImageMagick version 7.0.8-34 and occurs within the WriteDPXImage function located in the coders/dpx.c source file. The flaw manifests when processing certain DPX (Digital Picture Exchange) image files, creating a condition where allocated memory is not properly released during the image writing process. This memory management failure can lead to progressive memory consumption that ultimately impacts system stability and performance.
The technical nature of this vulnerability aligns with CWE-401, which categorizes memory leaks as a fundamental software flaw where allocated memory is not properly deallocated. The WriteDPXImage function in ImageMagick's codebase fails to correctly manage memory resources when processing DPX format images, particularly when handling malformed or specially crafted input files. This memory leak occurs during the image writing operation, where temporary buffers and memory structures are allocated to store DPX format data but are not subsequently freed. The vulnerability can be triggered through various attack vectors including web applications that process user-uploaded images, file processing systems, or any application that utilizes ImageMagick's DPX handling capabilities.
From an operational impact perspective, this vulnerability creates significant security and performance concerns for affected systems. The memory leak can cause applications using ImageMagick to gradually consume increasing amounts of system memory, potentially leading to system slowdowns, application crashes, or even complete system exhaustion. In server environments where ImageMagick is used for image processing tasks, this vulnerability could enable denial of service attacks where malicious actors submit specially crafted DPX files to consume system resources. The vulnerability is particularly concerning in web applications where users can upload images, as it allows for resource exhaustion attacks that can affect service availability. Additionally, the memory leak can compound over time in long-running applications, making it difficult to identify and resolve the underlying issue.
Mitigation strategies for CVE-2019-12975 should prioritize immediate patching of affected ImageMagick installations to version 7.0.8-35 or later, which contains the necessary memory management fixes. Organizations should implement strict input validation and sanitization for all image processing operations, particularly when handling user-uploaded content. Network segmentation and access controls should be enforced to limit exposure of systems that utilize ImageMagick for image processing tasks. Additionally, implementing memory monitoring and alerting systems can help detect abnormal memory consumption patterns that may indicate exploitation attempts. The vulnerability demonstrates the importance of proper memory management in image processing libraries and highlights the need for thorough security testing of file format handling functions. Security teams should also consider implementing sandboxing mechanisms for image processing operations to contain potential impacts of similar vulnerabilities in the future. This issue underscores the broader ATT&CK tactic of resource exhaustion and demonstrates how seemingly benign file format processing can become a vector for system compromise when memory management flaws exist.