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RealplayerApplication · Realnetworks

CVE-2011-4248

HIGH · 9.3 CVSS v2.0 Published 2011-11-24
Fix available
A fix is available. Upgrade to after 14.0.7 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
RealNetworks RealPlayer before 15.0.0 allows remote attackers to execute arbitrary code via a malformed AAC file.

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

RealNetworks RealPlayer before version 15.0.0 contains a memory corruption vulnerability in its AAC audio file parser. Attackers can exploit this by tricking users into opening specially crafted malformed AAC files, leading to arbitrary code execution with the privileges of the running user.

MitigationUpdate RealPlayer to version 15.0.0 or later. If the software is no longer supported, migrate to an alternative media player and remove RealPlayer from affected systems.

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
RealplayerApplication
Affected:<= 14.0.7= 4= 5= 6= 7= 8= 10.0= 10.5= 11.0= 11.0.1= 11.0.2= 11.0.2.1744

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. Verify RealPlayer installation
    Check for RealPlayer installation by searching for the executable: On Windows, look for 'RealPlayer.exe' or 'realplay.exe' in Program Files directories, or check the registry under HKEY_LOCAL_MACHINE\SOFTWARE\RealNetworks for installed applications.
    Affected if RealPlayer is found installed on the system
  2. Determine installed RealPlayer version
    Locate the RealPlayer executable and right-click to view Properties, or run 'realplay.exe -version' from the command line if the executable is in PATH. Alternatively, check the Windows registry under HKEY_LOCAL_MACHINE\SOFTWARE\RealNetworks\RealPlayer\Settings for 'Version' or 'PlayerVersion' values.
    Affected if The installed version is 14.0.7 or earlier, or matches one of the specific affected versions: 4, 5, 6, 7, 8, 10.0, 10.5, 11.0, 11.0.1, 11.0.2, or 11.0.2.1744
  3. Confirm AAC audio codec support is present
    Check if the AAC decoder module exists by looking for 'rnaac.dll' or similar AAC-related DLL files in the RealPlayer installation directory (commonly C:\Program Files\Real\RealPlayer or C:\Program Files (x86)\Real\RealPlayer).
    Affected if The AAC codec DLL is present and the RealPlayer version is vulnerable
  4. Verify default file associations include AAC
    Check Windows registry under HKEY_CLASSES_ROOT for .aac file extension associations pointing to RealPlayer, or view RealPlayer settings under Tools > Preferences > File Types to see which formats are set to open automatically.
    Affected if RealPlayer is configured to automatically open .aac files and the installed version is in the affected range

The system is affected if RealPlayer is installed with a version number less than 15.0.0 (or matching the specific affected versions listed) and the AAC audio parsing capability is present.

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 14.0.7
Interim mitigation

Update RealPlayer to version 15.0.0 or later. If the software is no longer supported, migrate to an alternative media player and remove RealPlayer from affected systems.

Recommended fix High confidence

RealPlayer 15.0.0 or later

  1. 1. Uninstall the current version of RealPlayer from the system
  2. 2. Download RealPlayer version 15.0.0 or later from the official Real.com website (service.real.com)
  3. 3. Install the downloaded RealPlayer 15.0.0 or newer version
  4. 4. Verify the installation by checking the installed version in RealPlayer's About section

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

Fix this in Realplayer Scoped from the published advisory
  • Consultation2.0 h
  • Implementation2.0 h
  • Testing1.0 h
  • Review / QA1.0 h
6.0 hours of engineering $1,090
Get the upgrade done

An estimate, not a bill — we confirm scope with you before any work starts. Need it this week? Rush from $1,744.

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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-2011-4248 in production — separate from our analysis above.

No notes yet

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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