CVE-2021-3498
HIGHCVSS Vector
CVSS:3.1/AV:L/AC:L/PR:N/UI:R/S:U/C:H/I:H/A:H
Lifecycle Timeline
3Description
GStreamer before 1.18.4 might cause heap corruption when parsing certain malformed Matroska files.
Analysis
A heap corruption vulnerability exists in GStreamer media framework versions before 1.18.4 when parsing malformed Matroska (MKV) video files. An attacker can craft a malicious Matroska file that, when processed by a vulnerable GStreamer installation, triggers heap memory corruption leading to potential code execution with the privileges of the application using GStreamer. While not known to be actively exploited in the wild (not in KEV), a public proof-of-concept exploit is available and the EPSS score of 0.24% indicates moderate exploitation likelihood.
Technical Context
GStreamer is a popular open-source multimedia framework used for creating streaming media applications across Linux distributions and embedded systems. The vulnerability affects the Matroska demuxer component responsible for parsing MKV container format files, as indicated by the specific affected CPE cpe:2.3:a:gstreamer:gstreamer. The root cause is a buffer overflow (CWE-119) where improper bounds checking during Matroska file parsing allows writing beyond allocated heap memory boundaries. Major Linux distributions including Debian 10, Red Hat Enterprise Linux 7 and 8 ship vulnerable versions of GStreamer in their repositories.
Affected Products
GStreamer versions prior to 1.18.4 are vulnerable to this heap corruption issue, as specified in CPE cpe:2.3:a:gstreamer:gstreamer:*:*:*:*:*:*:*:* with version constraints. The vulnerability impacts multiple Linux distributions including Debian Linux 10.0 (CPE cpe:2.3:o:debian:debian_linux:10.0), Red Hat Enterprise Linux 7.0 and 8.0 (CPEs cpe:2.3:o:redhat:enterprise_linux:7.0 and 8.0). The official GStreamer security advisory is available at https://gstreamer.freedesktop.org/security/sa-2021-0003.html with additional tracking in Red Hat Bugzilla at https://bugzilla.redhat.com/show_bug.cgi?id=1945342.
Remediation
Upgrade GStreamer to version 1.18.4 or later which contains the security fix for this heap corruption vulnerability. Distribution-specific updates are available through Debian Security Advisory DSA-4900 at https://www.debian.org/security/2021/dsa-4900 and Gentoo Linux Security Advisory GLSA-202208-31 at https://security.gentoo.org/glsa/202208-31. For systems that cannot be immediately patched, implement strict input validation for Matroska files and avoid processing MKV files from untrusted sources. Consider sandboxing media processing applications using AppArmor or SELinux to limit potential damage from exploitation.
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