CVE-2024-47774: GStreamer OOB-Read Vulnerability

CVE-2024-47774 Overview

CVE-2024-47774 is an out-of-bounds read vulnerability discovered in GStreamer, a widely-used open-source multimedia framework for constructing graphs of media-handling components. The vulnerability exists within the gst_avi_subtitle_parse_gab2_chunk function in the gstavisubtitle.c file, where improper validation of the name_length value read from input files can lead to an integer overflow condition, ultimately causing memory access beyond allocated buffer boundaries.

Critical Impact

This vulnerability allows attackers to trigger out-of-bounds memory reads through specially crafted AVI subtitle files, potentially leading to information disclosure or application crashes affecting multimedia applications built on GStreamer.

Affected Products

• GStreamer versions prior to 1.24.10
• Applications and media players utilizing vulnerable GStreamer libraries
• Linux distributions and systems with unpatched GStreamer installations

Discovery Timeline

• 2024-12-12 - CVE-2024-47774 published to NVD
• 2026-03-17 - Last updated in NVD database

Technical Details for CVE-2024-47774

Vulnerability Analysis

This vulnerability is classified as CWE-125 (Out-of-Bounds Read), occurring in the AVI subtitle parsing functionality of GStreamer. The flaw stems from insufficient bounds checking when processing subtitle chunks within AVI container files.

The vulnerable function reads the name_length value directly from the input file without adequate validation. The critical issue arises when name_length exceeds 0xFFFFFFFF - 17, which causes an integer overflow during subsequent arithmetic operations. When this overflow occurs, the boundary check condition fails to properly constrain the memory access, allowing the function to read memory beyond the allocated buffer.

This type of vulnerability requires local access to exploit, as an attacker would need to provide a maliciously crafted AVI file for processing. The impact includes potential information disclosure through leaked memory contents and denial of service through application crashes.

Root Cause

The root cause of CVE-2024-47774 is an integer overflow vulnerability combined with insufficient input validation. The name_length parameter is read from untrusted input (the AVI file) and used in arithmetic calculations without proper bounds checking to prevent integer wraparound. When name_length values approach the maximum 32-bit integer boundary, adding 17 to this value causes the result to wrap around to a small number, bypassing the intended boundary check and enabling the out-of-bounds read condition.

Attack Vector

The attack vector for this vulnerability is local, requiring an attacker to craft a malicious AVI file containing a specially constructed subtitle chunk. The exploitation scenario involves:

1. An attacker creates an AVI file with a GAB2 subtitle chunk containing a name_length value designed to trigger the integer overflow
2. The victim opens or processes the malicious AVI file using an application built on the vulnerable GStreamer library
3. When GStreamer parses the subtitle chunk, the integer overflow bypasses boundary checks
4. The application reads memory beyond the allocated buffer, potentially exposing sensitive data or causing a crash

The vulnerability does not require elevated privileges to trigger, though exploitation is limited to scenarios where the attacker can influence media files processed by the target system.

Detection Methods for CVE-2024-47774

Indicators of Compromise

• Unexpected crashes in applications using GStreamer when processing AVI files with embedded subtitles
• Abnormal memory access patterns or segmentation faults in media processing workflows
• AVI files with unusually large or malformed subtitle chunk headers in media directories

Detection Strategies

• Monitor for application crashes in GStreamer-based media players with crash dumps indicating gstavisubtitle.c or related components
• Implement file integrity monitoring for media processing directories to detect suspicious AVI files
• Deploy memory sanitizer tools (AddressSanitizer, Valgrind) in development and testing environments to detect out-of-bounds reads

Monitoring Recommendations

• Enable verbose logging for media processing applications to capture detailed parsing errors
• Monitor system logs for SIGSEGV or SIGBUS signals from GStreamer-dependent processes
• Implement application-level telemetry to track unusual file processing failures in multimedia pipelines

How to Mitigate CVE-2024-47774

Immediate Actions Required

• Update GStreamer to version 1.24.10 or later, which contains the fix for this vulnerability
• Review and update all applications that bundle or depend on GStreamer libraries
• Limit processing of AVI files from untrusted sources until patching is complete
• Consider disabling AVI subtitle parsing functionality if not required for your use case

Patch Information

The vulnerability has been fixed in GStreamer version 1.24.10. The official patch is available through the GitLab Merge Request. Additional security information is available through the GitHub Security Advisory and Debian LTS Announcement for distribution-specific guidance.

System administrators should update GStreamer packages through their distribution's package manager or compile from source using the patched version for systems requiring custom builds.

Workarounds

• Restrict AVI file processing to trusted sources only through access controls and content filtering
• Implement input validation at the application layer to reject AVI files with abnormal subtitle chunk sizes before passing to GStreamer
• Run media processing applications in sandboxed environments to limit the impact of potential exploitation
• Consider using alternative subtitle formats that do not rely on the vulnerable GAB2 parsing code

# Configuration example
# Check installed GStreamer version
gst-inspect-1.0 --version

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

# Update GStreamer on RHEL/CentOS systems
sudo dnf update gstreamer1-plugins-good

# Verify the update was successful
gst-inspect-1.0 --version