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OpensuseOperating system

CVE-2015-1182

HIGH · 7.5 CVSS v2.0 Published 2015-01-27
Mitigation only
No fix yet — a mitigation exists. There is no fixed release. A documented workaround reduces exposure in the meantime.
See remediation →
84/100
Remediation priority · High
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
The asn1_get_sequence_of function in library/asn1parse.c in PolarSSL 1.0 through 1.2.12 and 1.3.x through 1.3.9 does not properly initialize a pointer in the asn1_sequence linked list, which allows remote attackers to cause a denial of service (crash) or possibly execute arbitrary code via a crafted ASN.1 sequence in a certificate.

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

Pointer initialization vulnerability in PolarSSL's asn1_get_sequence_of function in library/asn1parse.c. The function fails to properly initialize a pointer within the asn1_sequence linked list structure, leading to use of uninitialized memory. When processing crafted ASN.1 sequences in X.509 certificates, this can cause crashes (denial of service) or potentially enable arbitrary code execution.

MitigationUpgrade to PolarSSL 1.2.13 or later, or migrate to mbed TLS (the successor project). If immediate patching is not feasible, implement strict certificate validation boundaries and consider deploying network-level filtering of certificates from untrusted sources.

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
OpensuseOperating system
Affected:= 13.2
PolarsslApplication
Affected:= 1.0.0= 1.1.0= 1.1.1= 1.1.2= 1.1.3= 1.1.4= 1.1.5= 1.1.6= 1.1.7= 1.1.8= 1.2.0= 1.2.1

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
Low
Authentication
None
Confidentiality
Partial
Integrity
Partial
Availability
Partial

AV:N/AC:L/Au:N/C:P/I:P/A:P

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. Identify PolarSSL or mbed TLS installation
    Run 'grep -r polar' or 'grep -r mbed' in /usr/lib or check package manager output for polar* or mbedtls packages. Also check if any linked application uses libpolarssl or libmbedtls via 'ldd /path/to/application' | grep -i polar
    Affected if The library is present and version is 1.0.0 through 1.2.1 inclusive, or version cannot be determined (older than 1.2.13)
  2. Determine the exact PolarSSL version
    If installed as a package, run 'rpm -qa | grep -i polar' (openSUSE) or check the library file version via 'strings /usr/lib/libpolarssl.so.* | grep -i version' or check header files in /usr/include/ for version macros like POLARSSL_VERSION_
    Affected if Version listed in the affected ranges: 1.0.0, 1.1.0-1.1.8, 1.2.0, or 1.2.1
  3. Check if X.509 certificate parsing is in use
    Review application code or dependencies to see if it calls asn1_get_sequence_of or uses x509parse functions. Search source code for 'x509parse' or 'asn1_get_sequence_of' or check if application links against libx509parse
    Affected if The application or service parses X.509 certificates, particularly from external or untrusted sources
  4. Identify if certificates from untrusted sources are processed
    Review application configuration and logs to determine if it processes certificates from clients, remote servers, or other untrusted entities. Check for SSL/TLS server or client functionality that validates certificates
    Affected if The environment processes ASN.1 certificates from sources outside the trusted certificate authority chain

You are affected if PolarSSL or mbed TLS version 1.0.0 through 1.2.1 is installed AND your application uses X.509 certificate parsing on certificates from potentially untrusted sources.

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.

From vendor data
Mitigation available No clean upgrade yet — mitigate in the meantime
Mitigation

Upgrade to PolarSSL 1.2.13 or later, or migrate to mbed TLS (the successor project). If immediate patching is not feasible, implement strict certificate validation boundaries and consider deploying network-level filtering of certificates from untrusted sources.

Fix this in Opensuse Scoped from the published advisory
  • Consultation3.0 h
  • Implementation6.0 h
  • Testing10.0 h
  • Review / QA4.0 h
23.0 hours of engineering $3,900
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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-2015-1182 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
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  • Version or environment caveats, and links to real fixes
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