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NetbsdOperating system

CVE-2017-1000378

CRITICAL · 9.8 CVSS v3.0 Published 2017-06-19
Fix available
A fix is available. Upgrade to after 7.1 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
The NetBSD qsort() function is recursive, and not randomized, an attacker can construct a pathological input array of N elements that causes qsort() to deterministically recurse N/4 times. This allows attackers to consume arbitrary amounts of stack memory and manipulate stack memory to assist in arbitrary code execution attacks. This affects NetBSD 7.1 and possibly earlier versions.

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

NetBSD's qsort() implementation is recursive without randomization, allowing attackers to craft pathological input arrays of N elements that trigger N/4 nested recursive calls deterministically. This stack exhaustion vector can be weaponized to manipulate stack memory for arbitrary code execution.

MitigationReplace the recursive qsort() with an iterative implementation using an explicit stack buffer and/or add input randomization to prevent predictable pathological input patterns. Apply vendor patches for NetBSD 7.1 and earlier.

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
NetbsdOperating system
Affected:<= 7.1

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
Privileges
None
User interaction
None
Scope
Unchanged
Confidentiality
High
Integrity
High
Availability
High

CVSS:3.0/AV:N/AC:L/PR:N/UI:N/S:U/C:H/I:H/A:H

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 the operating system
    Run 'uname -a' or check /etc/os-release to confirm the system is NetBSD
    Affected if The operating system is not NetBSD (this CVE only affects NetBSD)
  2. Determine the NetBSD version
    Run 'uname -r' to get the release version (for example, 7.0, 7.1, 7.1.1, 8.0)
    Affected if The version is 7.1 or earlier (for example, 7.0, 7.0.1, 7.0.2, 7.1)
  3. Verify qsort() is in use with external input
    Audit any custom or third-party applications for calls to qsort() where the array being sorted originates from untrusted sources such as network input, files from untrusted users, or user-controlled data
    Affected if Applications pass attacker-controlled arrays to qsort(), which could trigger the recursive stack exhaustion
  4. Check for vulnerable qsort() in libc
    Inspect the /usr/src/lib/libc/stdlib/qsort.c file if source is available, or check if the libc library is from an unpatched NetBSD <= 7.1 system
    Affected if The qsort() implementation in the system's libc uses recursive calls without randomization

A system is affected if it runs NetBSD version 7.1 or earlier and has applications or code that use qsort() with attacker-controllable input arrays.

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 7.1
Interim mitigation

Replace the recursive qsort() with an iterative implementation using an explicit stack buffer and/or add input randomization to prevent predictable pathological input patterns. Apply vendor patches for NetBSD 7.1 and earlier.

Recommended fix Moderate confidence

NetBSD 7.1.1 or later

  1. 1. Back up all critical data and configurations on the affected NetBSD system
  2. 2. Obtain NetBSD 7.1.1 or later from the official NetBSD distribution (https://cdn.netbsd.org)
  3. 3. Install the updated NetBSD release following the standard upgrade procedure documented in the NetBSD Guide (https://www.netbsd.org/docs/guide/)
  4. 4. Verify the qsort() implementation now uses randomized pivot selection by reviewing source code in /usr/src/lib/libc/stdlib/qsort.c
  5. 5. Test that the system operates normally after upgrade
Caveat Standard minor version upgrade - minimal risk, but test in staging environment first

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

Fix this in Netbsd Scoped from the published advisory
  • Consultation2.0 h
  • Implementation8.0 h
  • Testing6.0 h
  • Review / QA4.0 h
20.0 hours of engineering $3,460
Get the upgrade done

An estimate, not a bill — we confirm scope with you before any work starts. Need it this week? Rush from $5,536.

Scan for this in your stack

Free · runs locally
dbcve dependency scanner

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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-2017-1000378 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