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Afpl GhostscriptApplication · Artifex

CVE-2009-3743

HIGH · 9.3 CVSS v2.0 Published 2010-08-26
Fix available
A fix is available. Upgrade to after 8.70 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
Off-by-one error in the Ins_MINDEX function in the TrueType bytecode interpreter in Ghostscript before 8.71 allows remote attackers to execute arbitrary code or cause a denial of service (heap memory corruption) via a malformed TrueType font in a document that trigger an integer overflow and a heap-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 confidence

An off-by-one error in the Ins_MINDEX function of Ghostscript's TrueType bytecode interpreter before version 8.71 allows remote code execution via malformed TrueType fonts. The vulnerability triggers an integer overflow that leads to heap-based buffer overflow, enabling attackers to corrupt heap memory and potentially execute arbitrary code through specially crafted documents.

MitigationUpgrade Ghostscript to version 8.71 or later to patch the vulnerable TrueType bytecode interpreter. Organizations should also implement document sanitization and content disarm for uploaded font files in document processing workflows.

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
Afpl GhostscriptApplication
Affected:= 6.0= 6.01= 6.50= 7.00= 7.03= 7.04= 8.00= 8.11= 8.12= 8.13= 8.14= 8.50
Ghostscript FontsApplication
Affected:= 6.0= 8.11
Gpl GhostscriptApplication
Affected:<= 8.70= 8.01= 8.15= 8.50= 8.51= 8.54= 8.56= 8.57= 8.60= 8.61= 8.62= 8.63

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 Ghostscript version
    Run 'gs --version' or 'gs -v' to display the installed Ghostscript version number
    Affected if Version is 8.70 or earlier, or falls within any of the affected version ranges listed (6.0-8.50 for Afpl, <=8.70 for Gpl, specific versions like 8.01, 8.15, etc.)
  2. Identify if TrueType fonts are in use
    Inspect document processing workflows or search for .ttf/.ttc font files being processed by Ghostscript. Check for fontconfig settings or Ghostscript font paths that include TrueType fonts.
    Affected if TrueType fonts are loaded or processed by the Ghostscript instance
  3. Confirm TrueType bytecode interpreter is active
    Ghostscript uses its TrueType bytecode interpreter when rendering fonts. Monitor for calls to the Ins_MINDEX function during font parsing, or test by submitting a crafted TrueType font for processing.
    Affected if The TrueType bytecode interpreter is enabled and processes untrusted font files

User is affected if Ghostscript version is 8.70 or earlier AND the system processes TrueType fonts through the vulnerable bytecode interpreter.

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 8.70
Interim mitigation

Upgrade Ghostscript to version 8.71 or later to patch the vulnerable TrueType bytecode interpreter. Organizations should also implement document sanitization and content disarm for uploaded font files in document processing workflows.

Recommended fix High confidence

Ghostscript 8.71 or later (specifically GPL Ghostscript 8.71)

  1. 1. Identify the current Ghostscript version by running 'gs --version' or 'gs -v'
  2. 2. Determine which Ghostscript variant is installed (Afpl, GPL, or GNU) using the package manager (e.g., 'rpm -qa | grep ghostscript', 'dpkg -l | grep ghostscript', or 'emerge -s ghostscript')
  3. 3. Remove the existing vulnerable Ghostscript installation using the appropriate package manager command (e.g., 'yum remove ghostscript', 'apt-get remove ghostscript', or 'emerge -C ghostscript')
  4. 4. Install Ghostscript version 8.71 or later from the distribution's official repositories, or download from the official Ghostscript website (http://www.ghostscript.com/)
  5. 5. Verify the installation was successful by running 'gs --version' and confirming the version is 8.71 or higher
  6. 6. Test that PostScript and PDF processing still works correctly with the new version

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

Fix this in Afpl Ghostscript Scoped from the published advisory
  • Consultation2.0 h
  • Implementation4.0 h
  • Testing6.0 h
  • Review / QA2.0 h
14.0 hours of engineering $2,380
Get the upgrade done

An estimate, not a bill — we confirm scope with you before any work starts. Need it this week? Rush from $3,808.

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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-2009-3743 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