CVE-2024-47538: GStreamer Buffer Overflow Vulnerability

CVE-2024-47538 Overview

CVE-2024-47538 is a stack-buffer overflow vulnerability discovered in GStreamer, the widely-used open-source multimedia framework for constructing graphs of media-handling components. The vulnerability exists in the vorbis_handle_identification_packet function within the gstvorbisdec.c file, where improper bounds checking allows an attacker to write beyond the boundaries of a stack-allocated buffer.

Critical Impact

This vulnerability enables attackers to overwrite critical stack data including the EIP (Instruction Pointer) address and the GstAudioInfo structure, potentially leading to arbitrary code execution on affected systems processing malicious Vorbis audio content.

Affected Products

• GStreamer versions prior to 1.24.10
• Applications and systems using vulnerable GStreamer Vorbis decoder components
• Linux distributions shipping affected GStreamer packages (including Debian)

Discovery Timeline

• 2024-12-12 - CVE CVE-2024-47538 published to NVD
• 2026-03-17 - Last updated in NVD database

Technical Details for CVE-2024-47538

Vulnerability Analysis

The vulnerability resides in the Vorbis audio decoder component of GStreamer. When processing Vorbis identification packets, the vorbis_handle_identification_packet function allocates a fixed-size array called position on the stack with a capacity of 64 elements. The function then iterates through audio channels specified in the Vorbis header (vd->vi.channels) and writes position values to this array.

The critical flaw occurs when the channel count exceeds 64. In this scenario, the loop continues writing GST_AUDIO_CHANNEL_POSITION_NONE values beyond the position array boundaries, corrupting adjacent stack memory. This out-of-bounds write can overwrite the saved EIP address on the stack, allowing an attacker to redirect program execution to arbitrary code. Additionally, the GstAudioInfo info structure can be corrupted, potentially causing further memory corruption or application instability.

Root Cause

The root cause is a classic stack-buffer overflow resulting from insufficient bounds validation (CWE-121: Stack-based Buffer Overflow, CWE-787: Out-of-bounds Write). The code fails to verify that the number of audio channels specified in the Vorbis stream does not exceed the fixed size of the stack-allocated position array. By crafting a malicious Vorbis file with more than 64 channels, an attacker can trigger the overflow condition.

Attack Vector

The attack vector requires local access to deliver a malicious media file to the target system. An attacker would craft a specially constructed Vorbis audio file containing a channel count exceeding 64 in its identification header. When a GStreamer-based application attempts to decode this file, the overflow occurs during the initial parsing phase of the Vorbis stream.

The exploitation scenario typically involves:

1. Creating a malicious Vorbis audio file with an artificially inflated channel count
2. Delivering the file to a victim through various means (email attachment, web download, media sharing)
3. The victim opens or plays the file using any GStreamer-based media application
4. The buffer overflow triggers, potentially allowing code execution in the context of the media player

As this is a local attack vector requiring user interaction with a malicious file, exploitation complexity is relatively low once the malicious payload is delivered.

Detection Methods for CVE-2024-47538

Indicators of Compromise

• Unexpected crashes or segmentation faults in GStreamer-based media applications when processing Vorbis audio files
• Media files with abnormally high Vorbis channel counts (greater than 64 channels)
• Application crash dumps showing corruption in the vorbis_handle_identification_packet function or related Vorbis decoding routines
• Suspicious media files received from untrusted sources with unusual audio stream configurations

Detection Strategies

• Deploy file integrity monitoring to detect unusual Vorbis audio files with anomalous header configurations
• Implement sandbox environments for media processing to contain potential exploitation attempts
• Configure application crash monitoring to detect patterns consistent with buffer overflow exploitation
• Utilize memory corruption detection tools (such as AddressSanitizer) in development and testing environments

Monitoring Recommendations

• Monitor GStreamer-based application logs for repeated crashes during Vorbis decoding operations
• Track incoming media files for anomalous Vorbis stream characteristics before processing
• Implement behavioral monitoring for post-exploitation indicators following media file access
• Enable crash reporting and telemetry on systems running vulnerable GStreamer versions

How to Mitigate CVE-2024-47538

Immediate Actions Required

• Update GStreamer to version 1.24.10 or later immediately across all affected systems
• Apply available patches from your Linux distribution's security repositories (Debian LTS users should refer to the Debian LTS Announcement)
• Restrict processing of media files from untrusted sources until patching is complete
• Consider temporarily disabling Vorbis decoding capabilities if immediate patching is not feasible

Patch Information

The vulnerability has been fixed in GStreamer version 1.24.10. The official patch is available through the GitLab Patch Merge Request. Additional technical details and security information can be found in the GStreamer Security Advisory SA-2024-0022 and the GitHub Security Advisory GHSL-2024-115.

For Debian-based systems, security updates are available through the standard package management system. Ensure your package repositories are current and apply updates using your distribution's package manager.

Workarounds

• Isolate media processing workloads in sandboxed environments or containers with restricted privileges
• Implement file filtering to reject Vorbis audio files with channel counts exceeding normal thresholds (e.g., greater than 8 channels for typical audio content)
• Disable or remove Vorbis decoder plugins from GStreamer installations where Vorbis playback is not required
• Apply application-level restrictions to prevent processing of media files from untrusted network locations

# Verify GStreamer version and check for vulnerability
gst-launch-1.0 --version

# Update GStreamer on Debian/Ubuntu systems
sudo apt update && sudo apt upgrade gstreamer1.0-plugins-base

# Check installed GStreamer plugins including Vorbis decoder
gst-inspect-1.0 | grep vorbis