Gstreamer
CVE-2023-44429
HIGH
Vulnerability Assessment
| Weakness |
CWE
OWASP Top 10:2025
A06:2021 - Vulnerable and Outdated Components
ASVS 5.0
V15 - Secure Coding and Architecture Heap buffer bounds checking
MITRE ATT&CK
1 technique across 1 tactic: Execution The technique list with ATT&CK links and the kill-chain view is part of the Basic plan and up. |
| Impact | This vulnerability presents a significant real-world risk with a CVSS score of 8.8, indicating high impact across confidentiality, integrity, and availability. The attack vector is network-based (AV:N) with low complexity (AC:L) and requires no privileges (PR:N), though user interaction is needed (UI:R). While the vulnerability is not currently listed in CISA's Known Exploited Vulnerabilities (KEV) catalog and no public proof-of-concept has been identified, the technical simplicity of heap overflows combined with GStreamer's widespread deployment makes this an attractive target. The requirement for user interaction somewhat reduces the risk compared to fully remote vulnerabilities, but social engineering attacks using malicious media files remain a viable attack vector. |
| Exploit ScenarioDerived | An attacker could craft a malicious AV1 video file containing oversized data that triggers the heap overflow when processed by a vulnerable GStreamer installation. The victim would need to open or stream the malicious video through any application using GStreamer, such as a media player or web browser, allowing the attacker to execute arbitrary code with the privileges of the application. Given the low attack complexity and the prevalence of media sharing, this could be delivered through email attachments, malicious websites, or compromised streaming services. |
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Alert meAnalysisAIv1 – Mar 17, 2026
A heap-based buffer overflow vulnerability exists in GStreamer's AV1 codec parsing functionality that allows remote attackers to execute arbitrary code. The vulnerability affects all versions of GStreamer prior to the patched release and requires user interaction to exploit, such as opening a malicious AV1 video file. With a CVSS score of 8.8 and patches available since the disclosure, this represents a high-risk vulnerability for applications using GStreamer for media processing.
RemediationAI
Immediately upgrade GStreamer to a version that includes the security fix as detailed in the vendor's security advisory SA-2023-0009 available at https://gstreamer.freedesktop.org/security/sa-2023-0009.html. Organizations should prioritize patching systems that process untrusted media content or are exposed to external users. As a temporary mitigation, restrict processing of AV1-encoded content from untrusted sources and implement strict input validation for media files where possible. Monitor the Zero Day Initiative advisory at https://www.zerodayinitiative.com/advisories/ZDI-23-1648/ for any additional technical details or updates.
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Technical ContextAI · show details
GStreamer is a widely-used open-source multimedia framework that provides libraries and tools for constructing media processing pipelines. The vulnerability specifically affects the AV1 codec parsing component within GStreamer (CPE: cpe:2.3:a:gstreamer:gstreamer:*:*:*:*:*:*:*:*). The root cause is a classic heap buffer overflow (CWE-122) where the AV1 parser fails to properly validate the length of user-supplied data before copying it to a fixed-size heap buffer. This type of memory corruption vulnerability is particularly dangerous as it can lead to arbitrary code execution by overwriting critical memory structures.
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Severity by source
AV:N/AC:L/PR:N/UI:R/S:U/C:H/I:H/A:H
Primary rating from NVD · only source for this CVE.
CVSS VectorNVD
Lifecycle Timeline
2DescriptionCVE.org
GStreamer AV1 Codec Parsing Heap-based Buffer Overflow Remote Code Execution Vulnerability. This vulnerability allows remote attackers to execute arbitrary code on affected installations of GStreamer. Interaction with this library is required to exploit this vulnerability but attack vectors may vary depending on the implementation.
The specific flaw exists within the parsing of AV1 encoded video 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 heap-based buffer. An attacker can leverage this vulnerability to execute code in the context of the current process. Was ZDI-CAN-22226.
Executive ViewAI
CVE-2023-44429 presents significant security risk, a heap-based buffer overflow vulnerability rated CVSS 8.8. Exploitation could allow attackers to corrupt memory, crash the application, or potentially execute arbitrary code. A patch is available and should be applied as part of regular vulnerability management.
Apply vendor patch. If immediate patching is not feasible: (1) Enable ASLR and DEP where available; (2) Implement network segmentation; (3) Monitor for exploitation indicators.
Threat Intelligence Overview
NVD
CVE.org
EPSS
VulDB
How this decision was reached
The engine reads each signal below and applies a fixed list of rules from top to bottom. The first rule that matches sets the recommended action – like a statement, every line is shown.
What every action level means
SSVC AssessmentENISA
Priority Score
Attack Technique
A buffer overflow occurs when a program writes more data to a memory buffer than it was allocated to hold, causing the excess data to spill into adjacent memory regions.
Remote Code Execution represents the critical moment when an attacker successfully runs arbitrary code on a target system without physical access.
Affected Products (CPE)CVE.org
Heap-based buffer overflow in the flx_decode_delta_fli function in gst/flx/gstflxdec.c in the FLIC decoder in GStreamer
Heap-based buffer overflow in the flx_decode_delta_fli function in gst/flx/gstflxdec.c in the FLIC decoder in GStreamer
Heap-based buffer overflow in the flx_decode_delta_fli function in gst/flx/gstflxdec.c in the FLIC decoder in GStreamer
The FLIC decoder in GStreamer before 1.10.2 allows remote attackers to cause a denial of service (out-of-bounds write an
A heap-based buffer overflow vulnerability exists in GStreamer's RTSP connection parser that allows remote attackers to
A heap buffer over-read vulnerability exists in GStreamer's isomp4 plugin that allows reading past allocated memory boun
An integer overflow vulnerability in the GStreamer multimedia framework's matroska demuxer allows heap memory corruption
A critical integer overflow vulnerability in GStreamer's qtdemux element allows attackers to trigger denial of service o
A critical integer overflow vulnerability in the GStreamer multimedia framework's Matroska (MKV) demuxer can cause denia
An integer overflow vulnerability in GStreamer's Matroska demuxer can cause denial of service or potentially heap memory
An integer overflow vulnerability in GStreamer's AVI demux element allows attackers to trigger a heap overwrite when par
A heap overflow vulnerability exists in GStreamer's matroskaparse element due to an integer overflow in the gst_matroska
GitHub PoC
Exploit-DB