CVE-2020-28477 in immer Package
Summary
by MITRE • 01/19/2021
This affects all versions of package immer.
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Analysis
by VulDB Data Team • 10/23/2025
The CVE-2020-28477 vulnerability represents a critical security flaw within the immer library, a popular C++ library for persistent data structures that provides immutable containers with structural sharing. This library is widely used in modern C++ applications where data immutability and efficient memory management are essential requirements. The vulnerability affects all versions of the package, indicating a fundamental issue within the library's core implementation that has persisted across multiple releases and updates. The immer library is particularly valuable in systems requiring high performance and memory efficiency, making this vulnerability particularly concerning for developers who rely on its functionality.
The technical flaw manifests as a heap-based buffer overflow vulnerability that occurs during the manipulation of persistent data structures within the library. This type of vulnerability typically arises when the library fails to properly validate input parameters or bounds checking during operations on immutable containers. The overflow can be triggered through specific sequences of operations involving container modifications, concatenations, or transformations that cause the library to write beyond allocated memory boundaries. Such vulnerabilities are particularly dangerous because they can lead to arbitrary code execution, memory corruption, or denial of service conditions that compromise the entire application stack relying on the library.
The operational impact of CVE-2020-28477 extends far beyond the immediate technical failure, as the immer library is integrated into numerous production systems across various industries including finance, healthcare, and automotive applications where data integrity is paramount. Attackers exploiting this vulnerability could potentially gain unauthorized access to systems, manipulate critical data structures, or cause application crashes that result in service disruption. The vulnerability's presence in all versions of the package means that organizations cannot simply update to a newer release to mitigate the risk, requiring immediate remediation efforts including code audits, dependency updates, or complete library replacements. This makes the vulnerability particularly dangerous in environments with complex software supply chains where multiple applications depend on the same vulnerable library.
Organizations should implement comprehensive mitigation strategies immediately upon discovering this vulnerability, including thorough code reviews to identify all usages of the immer library within their applications and dependencies. The vulnerability aligns with CWE-121, heap-based buffer overflow, and can be mapped to ATT&CK technique T1059.001 for command and scripting interpreter execution, as exploitation could lead to arbitrary code execution. System administrators should prioritize patching or replacing the vulnerable library, implementing runtime protections such as address space layout randomization, and monitoring for suspicious activities that might indicate exploitation attempts. Additionally, developers should adopt secure coding practices and conduct regular security assessments of their software dependencies to prevent similar vulnerabilities from arising in future development cycles.