CVE-2022-35101 in SWFTools
Summary
by MITRE • 08/17/2022
SWFTools commit 772e55a2 was discovered to contain a segmentation violation via /multiarch/memset-vec-unaligned-erms.S.
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Analysis
by VulDB Data Team • 09/17/2022
The vulnerability identified as CVE-2022-35101 resides within SWFTools, a collection of utilities for working with Adobe Flash files and related formats. This particular issue manifests as a segmentation fault occurring during memory operations, specifically within the multiarch directory of the SWFTools repository. The commit 772e55a2 introduced changes that inadvertently created a condition where memory access violations could occur, leading to application crashes and potential system instability. The affected file /multiarch/memset-vec-unaligned-erms.S contains assembly code that handles memory operations for systems with multiple architectures, particularly focusing on vectorized memory operations that may not properly account for memory alignment requirements.
This memory-related vulnerability represents a classic case of improper memory handling that can be exploited to cause denial of service conditions or potentially more severe consequences depending on the execution context. The issue stems from inadequate validation of memory alignment during vectorized operations, which is a common pattern in low-level system programming where performance optimizations can introduce security risks. The vulnerability is particularly concerning because it occurs in memory management code that is fundamental to system stability and can be triggered through normal processing of Flash content or related files. The segmentation fault occurs when the system attempts to execute memory operations that violate alignment constraints or access memory locations that are not properly mapped.
The operational impact of this vulnerability extends beyond simple application crashes, as it can affect any system that processes Flash content or uses SWFTools for file manipulation. In environments where Flash processing is critical, such as media servers, content management systems, or web applications that handle Flash files, this vulnerability could lead to service disruption and potential data loss. The vulnerability could be exploited by malicious actors who craft specially formatted Flash files designed to trigger the memory access violation during processing. This creates a potential attack surface where untrusted input could be used to cause system instability, making it particularly dangerous in multi-user or web-facing environments where content validation may be insufficient.
Mitigation strategies for CVE-2022-35101 should focus on immediate code-level fixes that address the memory alignment issues in the affected assembly code. The most effective approach involves ensuring proper memory alignment checks before executing vectorized memory operations, which aligns with common security practices outlined in CWE-121 for buffer overflow conditions. Organizations should prioritize updating to patched versions of SWFTools where the memory handling has been corrected to properly validate memory alignment requirements. Additionally, implementing input validation measures and sandboxing techniques can help reduce the risk of exploitation, though these represent defensive measures rather than direct fixes. The ATT&CK framework would categorize this vulnerability under the T1499 category for network infiltration through system exploitation, as it represents a direct method for causing system instability through memory manipulation attacks. Given that this is a memory corruption issue, it may also be relevant to CWE-787 for out-of-bounds write conditions and CWE-125 for out-of-bounds read vulnerabilities that can occur when memory operations are not properly constrained.