CVE-2026-90684 in GPAC
Summary
by MITRE • 09/14/2026
A flaw has been found in GPAC up to f1219cde. Affected by this vulnerability is the function gf_node_get_field_count of the file scenegraph/base_scenegraph.c of the component MP4Box. Executing a manipulation can lead to reachable assertion. It is possible to launch the attack on the local host. The exploit has been published and may be used. Upgrading to version abi-16.23 addresses this issue. This patch is called 49dee5cad329cfed310c1682703df7daa47df31a. You should upgrade the affected component.
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Analysis
by VulDB Data Team • 09/14/2026
The vulnerability identified in GPAC, specifically affecting versions up to commit f1219cde, resides within the MP4Box utility and centers on the gf_node_get_field_count function located in the scenegraph/base_scenegraph.c source file. This flaw represents a critical logic error or improper input validation mechanism that fails to adequately check boundary conditions when processing media scene graph data structures. The core technical issue involves an assertion failure, which indicates that the software encounters an unexpected state during execution due to malformed or maliciously crafted input. Assertions are typically used in development builds to catch programming errors early, but their presence implies a lack of robust error handling for edge cases that can be triggered by external actors. When the gf_node_get_field_count function processes specific node configurations derived from manipulated media files, it fails to verify field counts against expected limits or structural integrity constraints, leading directly to a reachable assertion failure.
From an operational perspective, this vulnerability allows for local exploitation where an attacker with access to the system can trigger the flaw by providing specially crafted input data to MP4Box. The availability of published exploits significantly increases the risk landscape, as malicious actors do not need to reverse-engineer the attack vector themselves. A successful exploit results in a denial of service condition through application crash or termination due to the triggered assertion. While the immediate impact is typically limited to local resource exhaustion and potential disruption of services relying on MP4Box for media processing, such crashes can be leveraged as part of more complex attacks if other memory corruption vulnerabilities exist nearby or if the application runs with elevated privileges. The ability to crash a core multimedia processing tool locally undermines system stability and reliability, particularly in environments where automated media conversion pipelines are employed without sufficient sandboxing or isolation mechanisms.
This vulnerability aligns closely with CWE-617, which describes Reachable Assertion, indicating that an assertion condition can be met by external input rather than being strictly internal logic errors. It also relates to CWE-20, Improper Input Validation, as the root cause is the failure to properly sanitize or validate data before processing it within critical functions. In terms of offensive security frameworks like MITRE ATT&CK, this behavior corresponds to techniques involving application crash exploitation for denial of service, potentially falling under T1499 if considered part of endpoint disruption campaigns, though primarily it represents a reliability flaw exploitable via local privilege escalation paths or as a precursor to memory corruption attacks if the assertion failure leads to undefined behavior in subsequent code execution.
To mitigate this risk, organizations and developers must upgrade GPAC immediately to version abi-16.23 or later, which incorporates the specific patch identified by commit hash 49dee5cad329cfed310c1682703df7daa47df31a. This update addresses the underlying logic error in the scenegraph processing module and ensures that field counts are validated correctly before access or manipulation. Beyond software updates, it is advisable to implement strict input validation at entry points for any media parsing tools exposed to untrusted data sources. Deploying these utilities within sandboxed environments with restricted file system permissions can further limit the blast radius of potential exploits. Regular security audits and static code analysis focused on assertion usage in production builds are recommended to prevent similar issues where defensive programming constructs inadvertently become attack vectors due to insufficient boundary checks.