CVE-2008-4217
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 · uneditedInteger signedness error in BOM in Apple Mac OS X before 10.5.6 allows remote attackers to execute arbitrary code via the headers in a crafted CPIO archive, leading to a stack-based buffer overflow.
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 confidenceInteger signedness error in the BOM (Bill of Materials) file handler in Apple Mac OS X before 10.5.6 allows remote attackers to execute arbitrary code via crafted CPIO archive headers. The vulnerability stems from improper validation of length/size fields in CPIO archive headers, leading to a stack-based buffer overflow when the BOM copies data without proper bounds checking.
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<= 10.5.5= 10.4.11= 10.5= 10.5.1= 10.5.2= 10.5.3= 10.5.4<= 10.5.5= 10.4.11= 10.5= 10.5.1= 10.5.2= 10.5.3= 10.5.4CVSS 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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Determine the Mac OS X versionRun 'sw_vers' in Terminal or go to Apple menu > About This Mac to view the OS versionAffected if The version is 10.5.5 or earlier, or exactly 10.4.11
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Verify the BOM framework is presentCheck for the existence of /System/Library/PrivateFrameworks/Bom.framework which contains the vulnerable Bill of Materials handlerAffected if The BOM.framework exists on the system (it is present by default in affected versions)
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Confirm CPIO archive handling capabilityVerify that the 'cpio' command-line tool or BOM CPIO handling is available: run 'which cpio' or check for cpio in /usr/bin/Affected if CPIO utilities are installed (they are typically included in affected OS versions)
A system is affected if it runs Mac OS X 10.4.11 or any version of Mac OS X 10.5 through 10.5.5, as these contain the vulnerable BOM CPIO archive handler
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 · scopedUpgrade to Mac OS X 10.5.6 or later which contains the patch for this vulnerability. If upgrading is not possible, disable or restrict handling of untrusted CPIO archives.
Mac OS X 10.5.6 or later (or migrate to a later supported macOS version)
- 1. Back up all important data on the affected Mac system.
- 2. Verify current Mac OS X version by clicking Apple menu > About This Mac.
- 3. For Mac OS X 10.5.x systems: Install Mac OS X 10.5.6 update or later from Apple Support Downloads.
- 4. For Mac OS X 10.4.x systems: Note that 10.4.11 does not have the fix; migrate to a supported Mac OS X version (10.5.6 or later) via Apple-provided upgrade paths or new installation media.
- 5. After updating, verify the system is running Mac OS X 10.5.6 or later using About This Mac.
- 6. Test that CPIO archive handling works normally after the update.
Generated from the published advisory — verify against the referenced sources before acting.
- Consultation2.0 h
- Implementation2.0 h
- Testing4.0 h
- Review / QA2.0 h
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Scan for this in your stack
Free · runs locallyCheck whether your project pulls in CVE-2008-4217 — 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-2008-4217 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
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