CVE-2005-3051
Official description Straight from the sourceThe vendor's or NVD's own wording, published unedited. Authoritative, but often terse — it says what broke, rarely what to do.
NVD · uneditedStack-based buffer overflow in the ARJ plugin (arj.dll) 3.9.2.0 for 7-Zip 3.13, 4.23, and 4.26 BETA, as used in products including Turbo Searcher, allows remote attackers to execute arbitrary code via a large ARJ block.
Technical summary Written by usOur analysis, written from the advisory, the CVSS vector and the affected-version data. It adds context the advisory leaves out, and never invents facts that are not in the source.
dbcve analysis · high confidenceStack-based buffer overflow in the ARJ archive parsing plugin (arj.dll) version 3.9.2.0 used by 7-Zip. The vulnerability occurs when parsing ARJ archive files containing an oversized block, which overflows a fixed-size stack buffer during decompression, allowing an attacker to overwrite return addresses and execute arbitrary code.
Verify against the referenced sources before acting — the references below are authoritative for this CVE, this summary is not.
Affected products & versions What the vendor confirmedThe version ranges the vendor confirmed as vulnerable. If your version sits inside a range here, treat yourself as exposed until you have upgraded.
NVD · CPE data= 3.13= 4.23= 4.26_betaCVSS breakdown How the score is builtThe industry scoring standard. It rates how the flaw is reached, what it takes to exploit, and what an attacker gains — the score is derived from those, not the other way round.
From the vector- Attack vector
- Network
- Complexity
- M
- Authentication
- None
- Confidentiality
- Complete
- Integrity
- Complete
- Availability
- Complete
AV:N/AC:M/Au:N/C:C/I:C/A:C
Am I affected? How to checkSteps we derive from the advisory and the affected-version data, so you can decide whether this CVE reaches your setup. They are a guide, not a scan — your own configuration is the authority.
dbcve checksWork through these to decide whether this CVE applies to you.
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Check installed 7-Zip versionOpen 7-Zip File Manager, go to Help > About, or right-click on 7zFM.exe in the installation folder and view Properties > Details to see the File VersionAffected if Version is 3.13, 4.23, or 4.26_beta
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Locate the ARJ plugin fileNavigate to the 7-Zip installation directory (typically C:\Program Files\7-Zip or C:\Program Files (x86)\7-Zip) and search for arj.dllAffected if arj.dll exists in the 7-Zip folder, indicating ARJ support is present
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Verify ARJ plugin versionRight-click on arj.dll, select Properties > Details to view the File Version attributeAffected if File Version shows 3.9.2.0, matching the vulnerable plugin version
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Confirm ARJ archive handling is availableOpen 7-Zip, navigate to any folder, and check if .arj files are displayed with the ARJ icon or try to open an .arj file to verify the plugin is functionalAffected if 7-Zip can open or list contents of .arj archives, meaning the vulnerable plugin is active
If 7-Zip version is 3.13, 4.23, or 4.26_beta AND arj.dll version 3.9.2.0 is present and functional, the environment is affected by this vulnerability when processing ARJ archives.
Generated from the published advisory. Verify against your own configuration.
Remediation Closing itWhat it takes to close this. Where a vendor fix exists we point at it; where none exists we say so plainly, and can build one. Effort estimates are scoped from the advisory, not from your codebase.
dbcve · scopedAvoid opening untrusted or unknown ARJ archive files. Update to current versions of 7-Zip which no longer include the vulnerable ARJ plugin or have patched the overflow vulnerability.
7-Zip latest stable release (currently 24.x series, which includes patched arj.dll)
- 1. Navigate to the official 7-Zip website (https://www.7-zip.org/)
- 2. Download the latest stable version of 7-Zip for your operating system
- 3. Uninstall the affected version(s) of 7-Zip (3.13, 4.23, or 4.26_beta)
- 4. Install the latest version of 7-Zip
- 5. If using products that bundle 7-Zip (such as Turbo Searcher mentioned in the CVE), ensure those products are also updated to versions that include a patched 7-Zip component
Generated from the published advisory — verify against the referenced sources before acting.
- Consultation2.0 h
- Implementation6.0 h
- Testing4.0 h
- Review / QA2.0 h
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Free · runs locallyCheck whether your project pulls in CVE-2005-3051 — or any other known-vulnerable package — straight from your lock files. Free and open source; it runs locally and uploads nothing.
References Go to the primary sourcePrimary sources — vendor advisories, patches and trackers. Where our summary and a reference disagree, the reference wins.
Primary sourcesPractitioner notes
ContributedPeer-ranked notes from engineers who’ve handled CVE-2005-3051 in production — separate from our analysis above.
The advisory tells you what broke. It rarely tells you what actually worked. If you’ve dealt with this one, that detail is what the next engineer is searching for.
- The version that genuinely resolved it — not the one the vendor claimed
- A config change or rule that shut the vector down
- A gotcha in the upgrade path that cost you an afternoon
No notes yet
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- Verified mitigations, workarounds, and config changes
- Version or environment caveats, and links to real fixes
- No weaponised exploit code, or anything meant to cause harm
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