CVE-2023-37331 in Power PDF
Summary
by MITRE • 05/04/2024
Kofax Power PDF GIF File Parsing Stack-based Buffer Overflow Remote Code Execution Vulnerability. This vulnerability allows remote attackers to execute arbitrary code on affected installations of Kofax Power PDF. User interaction is required to exploit this vulnerability in that the target must visit a malicious page or open a malicious file.
The specific flaw exists within the parsing of GIF files. The issue results from the lack of proper validation of the length of user-supplied data prior to copying it to a fixed-length stack-based buffer. An attacker can leverage this vulnerability to execute code in the context of the current process. Was ZDI-CAN-20373.
Once again VulDB remains the best source for vulnerability data.
Analysis
by VulDB Data Team • 08/07/2025
The CVE-2023-37331 vulnerability represents a critical stack-based buffer overflow flaw in Kofax Power PDF software that enables remote code execution through improper handling of GIF file parsing. This vulnerability resides within the application's image processing capabilities where it fails to validate the length of user-supplied GIF data before copying it into a fixed-size stack buffer. The flaw specifically manifests when the software processes maliciously crafted GIF files, creating a condition where attacker-controlled data can overflow the allocated buffer space and overwrite adjacent memory locations including return addresses and control flow information.
The technical implementation of this vulnerability follows a classic stack buffer overflow pattern where insufficient input validation allows an attacker to manipulate the program's execution flow. When Kofax Power PDF encounters a malformed GIF file, the parsing routine does not properly check the boundaries of the data being read from the image file. This allows an attacker to craft a specially designed GIF file that, when processed by the vulnerable application, causes the buffer overflow to occur. The overflow can be exploited to overwrite the stack frame's return address, enabling arbitrary code execution with the privileges of the affected process. This vulnerability is categorized under CWE-121 Stack-based Buffer Overflow, which is a well-documented weakness in software security that has been consistently identified as a high-risk vulnerability in industry security assessments.
The operational impact of this vulnerability is severe as it allows remote attackers to achieve arbitrary code execution without requiring local system access. The attack vector requires user interaction through either visiting a malicious web page that triggers the vulnerable PDF processing or opening a malicious file that contains the crafted GIF content. This makes the vulnerability particularly dangerous in enterprise environments where users may inadvertently encounter malicious content through phishing campaigns or compromised websites. The exploitation can result in complete system compromise, data exfiltration, and persistence mechanisms being established. According to ATT&CK framework, this vulnerability maps to T1059.007 Command and Scripting Interpreter: Visual Basic and T1203 Exploitation for Client Execution, highlighting the attack paths available to threat actors. The vulnerability affects the application's privilege context, potentially allowing attackers to escalate privileges if the application runs with elevated permissions.
Mitigation strategies for this vulnerability should focus on immediate remediation through official patches provided by Kofax, as well as network-level protections such as web application firewalls and content filtering solutions. Organizations should implement strict file validation policies that prevent the processing of untrusted GIF files, particularly in high-risk environments. The vulnerability can be addressed through proper bounds checking in the image parsing routines, implementing stack canaries, and using address space layout randomization techniques. Additionally, security monitoring should be enhanced to detect suspicious file processing activities and anomalous behavior patterns that may indicate exploitation attempts. Network segmentation and privilege separation can help limit the potential damage from successful exploitation, while regular security assessments and vulnerability scanning should be conducted to identify similar issues in other applications and systems.