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LibavApplication

CVE-2012-2793

HIGH · 10.0 CVSS v2.0 Published 2012-09-10
Fix available
A fix is available. Upgrade to after 0.10.4 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
Unspecified vulnerability in the lag_decode_zero_run_line function in libavcodec/lagarith.c in FFmpeg before 0.11, and Libav 0.7.x before 0.7.7 and 0.8.x before 0.8.4, has unknown impact and attack vectors related to "too many zeros."

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 · moderate confidence

Heap-based memory corruption vulnerability in the Lagarith lossless video codec decoder (libavcodec/lagarith.c). The lag_decode_zero_run_line function fails to properly validate or limit zero-run lengths when processing crafted video files, allowing controlled memory writes beyond buffer boundaries. This can be triggered by processing a malicious Lagarith-compressed video file, potentially enabling arbitrary code execution.

MitigationUpgrade to FFmpeg 0.11 or later, or Libav 0.7.7+/0.8.4+. Until patched, avoid processing untrusted video files using the Lagarith codec with vulnerable versions.

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
LibavApplication
Affected:= 0.7= 0.7.1= 0.7.2= 0.7.3= 0.7.4= 0.7.5= 0.7.6= 0.8= 0.8.1= 0.8.2= 0.8.3
FfmpegApplication
Affected:<= 0.10.4= 0.3= 0.3.1= 0.3.2= 0.3.3= 0.3.4= 0.4.0= 0.4.2= 0.4.3= 0.4.4= 0.4.5= 0.4.6

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
Low
Authentication
None
Confidentiality
Complete
Integrity
Complete
Availability
Complete

AV:N/AC:L/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 FFmpeg or Libav is installed
    Run `ffmpeg -version 2>&1` or `avconv -version 2>&1` to identify the installed application and its version number
    Affected if The installed version falls within the affected ranges: Libav 0.7-0.8.3 or FFmpeg <=0.10.4, or versions 0.3.x through 0.4.6
  2. Verify the lagarith decoder is available
    Run `ffmpeg -codecs 2>/dev/null | grep -i lagarith` or `avconv -codecs 2>/dev/null | grep -i lagarith`. This shows whether the lagarith decoder module is compiled and available
    Affected if The lagarith decoder is listed as available (indicates the vulnerable code path exists in the environment)
  3. Identify the exact libavcodec version
    Run `ffmpeg -version 2>&1 | grep libav` or check the shared library file with `ls -la /usr/lib/*/libavcodec.so*` or `dpkg -l | grep libavcodec` to determine the precise library version
    Affected if The libavcodec version matches the affected versions listed in the CVE (Libav 0.7-0.8.3, FFmpeg <=0.10.4 or 0.3-0.4.6)
  4. Confirm active use of Lagarith codec
    Inspect any video files or media processing pipelines for `.lagarith` or similar Lagarith-compressed content, or check configuration files for lagarith as an allowed decoder
    Affected if The environment processes or is configured to process Lagarith-compressed video files

A system is affected if it runs a vulnerable FFmpeg or Libav version (0.7-0.8.3 for Libav, or <=0.10.4 / 0.3-0.4.6 for FFmpeg) AND has the lagarith decoder available AND processes Lagarith-compressed video 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 0.10.4
Interim mitigation

Upgrade to FFmpeg 0.11 or later, or Libav 0.7.7+/0.8.4+. Until patched, avoid processing untrusted video files using the Lagarith codec with vulnerable versions.

Recommended fix High confidence

FFmpeg: 0.11 or later; Libav: 0.7.7+/0.8.4+ or latest stable

  1. Identify whether the affected system uses Libav or FFmpeg
  2. For FFmpeg: upgrade to version 0.11 or later (e.g., latest stable release)
  3. For Libav 0.7.x: upgrade to version 0.7.7 or later
  4. For Libav 0.8.x: upgrade to version 0.8.4 or later
  5. After upgrade, verify the lag_decode_zero_run function in libavcodec/lagarith.c is no longer vulnerable
  6. Test that the upgraded library handles files with many zeros correctly
Caveat May require recompilation of dependent applications; verify API/ABI compatibility with existing integrations

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

Fix this in Libav Scoped from the published advisory
  • Consultation2.0 h
  • Implementation3.0 h
  • Testing3.0 h
  • Review / QA2.0 h
10.0 hours of engineering $1,750
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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-2012-2793 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