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FfmpegApplication

CVE-2013-0846

HIGH · 9.3 CVSS v2.0 Published 2013-12-07
Fix available
A fix is available. Upgrade to after 1.0 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
Array index error in the qdm2_decode_super_block function in libavcodec/qdm2.c in FFmpeg before 1.1 allows remote attackers to have an unspecified impact via crafted QDM2 data, which triggers an out-of-bounds array access.

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

Out-of-bounds array access vulnerability in the QDM2 audio decoder (qdm2_decode_super_block function in libavcodec/qdm2.c) in FFmpeg versions before 1.1. The vulnerability allows remote code execution via specially crafted QDM2 audio data that triggers improper array index validation.

MitigationUpgrade to FFmpeg 1.1 or later, which contains the bounds checking fix for the qdm2_decode_super_block function. Alternatively, implement input validation to reject malformed QDM2 streams before decoding.

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
FfmpegApplication
Affected:<= 1.0= 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
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. Determine FFmpeg version
    Run 'ffmpeg -version' or 'avconv -version' and note the version number in the output
    Affected if The version displayed is 0.3.x, 0.4.x, or any version 1.0 or earlier (including 1.0)
  2. Verify QDM2 decoder is available
    Run 'ffmpeg -codecs 2>/dev/null | grep -i qdm2' or check libavcodec/qdm2.c exists in the source if compiling from source
    Affected if QDM2 decoder is listed as available (decoders: QDM2) or the qdm2.c source file exists in the libavcodec directory
  3. Identify QDM2 audio content
    Run 'ffmpeg -i <filename> 2>&1' on media files and look for 'Audio: qdm2' or 'Stream #0:1: Audio: qdm2' in the output
    Affected if Any media file in the environment contains QDM2 encoded audio streams that would be processed by the affected decoder
  4. Confirm out-of-bounds vulnerability trigger condition
    The vulnerability triggers during qdm2_decode_super_block execution when processing malformed QDM2 data - this is implicit in the decoder; no manual trigger needed
    Affected if All three conditions are met: (1) FFmpeg version is affected, (2) QDM2 decoder is available, and (3) QDM2 content is being decoded

You are affected if FFmpeg version 0.3.x, 0.4.x, or 1.0 or earlier is installed AND the QDM2 decoder is available AND QDM2-encoded audio files are being processed.

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 1.0
Interim mitigation

Upgrade to FFmpeg 1.1 or later, which contains the bounds checking fix for the qdm2_decode_super_block function. Alternatively, implement input validation to reject malformed QDM2 streams before decoding.

Recommended fix High confidence

FFmpeg 1.1 or later (latest stable release recommended)

  1. 1. Check current FFmpeg version using: ffmpeg -version
  2. 2. Upgrade FFmpeg to version 1.1 or later. For example, on Debian/Ubuntu: apt-get update && apt-get install ffmpeg or download from https://www.ffmpeg.org/download.html
  3. 3. Verify the upgrade was successful by running: ffmpeg -version and confirming the version number is 1.1 or higher
  4. 4. Test that any QDM2-encoded media files process correctly with the updated FFmpeg
Caveat Minor: FFmpeg 1.1+ may have API changes or behavioral differences from 0.3.x versions; test critical workflows after upgrade

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

Fix this in Ffmpeg 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-2013-0846 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