CVE-2024-47834 in GStreamer
Summary
by MITRE • 12/12/2024
GStreamer is a library for constructing graphs of media-handling components. An Use-After-Free read vulnerability has been discovered affecting the processing of CodecPrivate elements in Matroska streams. In the GST_MATROSKA_ID_CODECPRIVATE case within the gst_matroska_demux_parse_stream function, a data chunk is allocated using gst_ebml_read_binary. Later, the allocated memory is freed in the gst_matroska_track_free function, by the call to g_free (track->codec_priv). Finally, the freed memory is accessed in the caps_serialize function through gst_value_serialize_buffer. The freed memory will be accessed in the gst_value_serialize_buffer function. This results in a UAF read vulnerability, as the function tries to process memory that has already been freed. This vulnerability is fixed in 1.24.10.
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Analysis
by VulDB Data Team • 02/18/2025
The vulnerability CVE-2024-47834 represents a critical use-after-free condition within the GStreamer multimedia framework that specifically affects the processing of Matroska stream elements. This flaw exists in the gst_matroska_demux_parse_stream function where CodecPrivate elements are handled, creating a dangerous scenario where memory management operations become misaligned. The vulnerability manifests when the GST_MATROSKA_ID_CODECPRIVATE case processes data chunks through the gst_ebml_read_binary allocation mechanism, followed by subsequent deallocation in the gst_matroska_track_free function via g_free(track->codec_priv) call. This memory management pattern creates a temporal window where the allocated buffer remains accessible through the caps_serialize function, specifically through the gst_value_serialize_buffer function, despite having been freed from memory. The technical implementation of this vulnerability aligns with CWE-416, which specifically addresses use-after-free conditions in memory management operations. The flaw demonstrates a classic memory safety issue where the application attempts to read from memory that has already been deallocated, creating potential for arbitrary code execution or system instability. This vulnerability affects the core media processing capabilities of GStreamer, particularly when handling Matroska container format streams that contain CodecPrivate elements, which are essential for proper media decoding and playback operations.
The operational impact of this vulnerability extends beyond simple memory corruption, as it creates a potential attack surface that could be exploited by malicious actors to manipulate media processing workflows. When a compromised Matroska stream is processed through affected GStreamer versions, the application's memory management becomes unstable, potentially allowing attackers to execute arbitrary code with the privileges of the running process. The vulnerability is particularly concerning in environments where GStreamer processes untrusted media content, such as web browsers, media servers, or content delivery platforms that handle user-uploaded videos. The timing of the memory access violation occurs during the caps_serialize function execution, which is part of the normal media processing pipeline, making this vulnerability difficult to detect through standard runtime monitoring. Attackers could leverage this condition to bypass security controls, as the use-after-free behavior can be exploited to achieve information disclosure or privilege escalation depending on the execution environment. The vulnerability's classification under ATT&CK technique T1059.007 (Command and Scripting Interpreter: PowerShell) is relevant as the memory corruption could potentially be exploited through script-based media processing attacks, while also aligning with T1203 (Exploitation for Client Execution) for client-side exploitation scenarios.
Mitigation strategies for CVE-2024-47834 require immediate deployment of GStreamer version 1.24.10 or later, which contains the necessary patches to address the memory management inconsistency in CodecPrivate element handling. System administrators should prioritize updating all GStreamer-dependent applications, particularly those handling multimedia content from untrusted sources, including web browsers, media players, streaming platforms, and content management systems. The patch implementation addresses the root cause by ensuring proper synchronization between memory allocation and deallocation operations within the Matroska demuxer component, preventing the scenario where freed memory is accessed through the caps_serialize function. Organizations should also implement additional runtime protections such as address space layout randomization, stack canaries, and heap metadata validation to reduce the exploitability of similar vulnerabilities. Security monitoring should include detection of unusual memory access patterns during media processing operations, particularly when handling CodecPrivate elements in Matroska streams. Regular vulnerability assessments of multimedia processing pipelines are essential to identify potential memory safety issues, with particular attention to functions that handle binary data serialization and memory management in multimedia frameworks. The fix demonstrates the importance of proper resource management in multimedia libraries where complex data structures and buffer handling operations must maintain strict memory lifecycle controls to prevent exploitation of temporal memory access violations.