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XineApplication

CVE-2008-5235

HIGH · 9.3 CVSS v2.0 Published 2008-11-26
Fix available
A fix is available. Upgrade to after 1.1.4 or later.
See remediation →
100/100
Remediation priority · Urgent
Remotely reachable No privileges Zero-click

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 · unedited
Heap-based buffer overflow in the demux_real_send_chunk function in src/demuxers/demux_real.c in xine-lib before 1.1.15 allows remote attackers to execute arbitrary code via a crafted Real Media file. NOTE: some of these details are obtained from third party information.

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 confidence

A heap-based buffer overflow vulnerability exists in xine-lib's Real Media demuxer (demux_real.c) in the demux_real_send_chunk function. The vulnerability allows remote code execution when processing a specially crafted Real Media file, as the function fails to properly validate buffer sizes before writing data to the heap.

MitigationUpdate xine-lib to version 1.1.15 or later to obtain the patched code. If patching is not immediately feasible, consider restricting access to untrusted Real Media files or disabling Real Media format support in applications using xine-lib.

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
XineApplication
Affected:<= 1.1.4= 0.9.13= 1= 1.0= 1.0.1= 1.0.2= 1.0.3a= 1.1.0= 1.1.1= 1.1.2= 1.1.3= 1.1.10.1

CVSS 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 checks

Work through these to decide whether this CVE applies to you.

  1. Check if xine-lib is installed
    Run 'pkg-config --modversion xine' or check your package manager for xine-lib installation
    Affected if xine-lib is not installed, the vulnerability does not apply
  2. Identify the installed xine-lib version
    Use 'xine-config --version' or check the library file version in /usr/lib (such as libxine.so.1.x.x)
    Affected if The installed version matches one of the affected versions: 0.9.13, 1.0, 1.0.1, 1.0.2, 1.0.3a, 1.1.0, 1.1.1, 1.1.2, 1.1.3, 1.1.4, or 1.1.10.1
  3. Verify Real Media demuxer module is present
    Check for the demux_real.c compiled module or shared library in the xine plugins directory (typically /usr/lib/xine/plugins or similar)
    Affected if The Real Media demuxer plugin exists and would be loaded when playing .rm files
  4. Confirm usage of Real Media format
    Inspect application logs or configuration to see if xine-lib has processed or would process Real Media (.rm, .ra, .rv) files
    Affected if Applications using this xine-lib installation are expected to open untrusted Real Media files

You are affected if xine-lib is installed with a version matching the affected list AND the Real Media demuxer is available and may process untrusted .rm files.

Generated from the published advisory. Verify against your own configuration.

Check your environment

Paste your version and any relevant configuration and it will be compared against the affected criteria above. Do not include secrets or credentials.

AI-assisted, checked against the advisory. Informational, not a guarantee.

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 · scoped
Upgrade available Upgrade to a release after 1.1.4
Interim mitigation

Update xine-lib to version 1.1.15 or later to obtain the patched code. If patching is not immediately feasible, consider restricting access to untrusted Real Media files or disabling Real Media format support in applications using xine-lib.

Recommended fix Moderate confidence

xine-lib 1.1.15 or later

  1. 1. Identify the currently installed xine-lib version using your system's package manager or by checking the version string
  2. 2. If the installed version is below 1.1.15, upgrade to xine-lib version 1.1.15 or later
  3. 3. For Debian/Ubuntu systems: run 'apt-get update && apt-get install libxine1' or 'apt-get upgrade libxine1'
  4. 4. For Red Hat/Fedora systems: run 'yum update xine-lib' or 'dnf update xine-lib'
  5. 5. For source compilation: download xine-lib 1.1.15 or later from the official xine project repository
  6. 6. Rebuild and reinstall the library, then restart any applications using xine-lib

Generated from the published advisory — verify against the referenced sources before acting.

Fix this in Xine Scoped from the published advisory
  • Consultation3.0 h
  • Implementation6.0 h
  • Testing4.0 h
  • Review / QA2.0 h
15.0 hours of engineering $2,640
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References Go to the primary sourcePrimary sources — vendor advisories, patches and trackers. Where our summary and a reference disagree, the reference wins.

Primary sources

Practitioner notes

Contributed

Peer-ranked notes from engineers who’ve handled CVE-2008-5235 in production — separate from our analysis above.

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What this is

A place for practitioners to share what actually worked: a mitigation you’ve tested, a configuration change, a version- or environment-specific caveat, or a link to a verified patch. The most useful notes rise to the top as peers upvote them, so the signal stays high.

What belongs here
  • 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
  • No spam, self-promotion, credentials, or personal data