dbcve.org
GraphicsmagickApplication

CVE-2017-11637

CRITICAL · 9.8 CVSS v3.0 Published 2017-07-26
Mitigation only
No fix yet — a mitigation exists. There is no fixed release. A documented workaround reduces exposure in the meantime.
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
GraphicsMagick 1.3.26 has a NULL pointer dereference in the WritePCLImage() function in coders/pcl.c during writes of monochrome images.

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

GraphicsMagick 1.3.26 contains a NULL pointer dereference vulnerability in the WritePCLImage() function in coders/pcl.c that triggers when processing monochrome images. An attacker could potentially crash the application or achieve code execution by supplying a specially crafted monochrome image file for PCL format conversion.

MitigationUpdate GraphicsMagick to version 1.3.27 or later which contains the fix. As a temporary workaround, disable PCL format support or restrict image processing to trusted inputs.

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
GraphicsmagickApplication
Affected:= 1.3.26

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 GraphicsMagick version
    Run 'gm version' or 'gm --version' to display the installed GraphicsMagick version number
    Affected if Version displayed is exactly 1.3.26
  2. Confirm PCL coder is available
    Run 'gm identify -list configure' and search for PCL in the coder/module list, or run 'gm convert -list format' and look for PCL entry
    Affected if PCL format is listed as supported (indicates coders/pcl.c is compiled in)
  3. Verify monochrome image processing to PCL
    Attempt a test conversion of any monochrome (1-bit) image to PCL format using: 'gm convert input.png -monochrome output.pcl' (or use any existing monochrome image)
    Affected if The command triggers the WritePCLImage function; a crash or NULL pointer error indicates the vulnerability is present
  4. Check for crash with PCL output
    Process a known monochrome image to PCL format and observe if GraphicsMagick crashes, hangs, or produces a NULL pointer related error
    Affected if Processing a monochrome image to PCL format causes a crash or error related to NULL pointer dereference in WritePCLImage

A system is affected if GraphicsMagick version 1.3.26 is installed with PCL support enabled and monochrome images are being processed to PCL output format, which triggers the NULL pointer dereference in WritePCLImage().

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
Mitigation available No clean upgrade yet — mitigate in the meantime
Mitigation

Update GraphicsMagick to version 1.3.27 or later which contains the fix. As a temporary workaround, disable PCL format support or restrict image processing to trusted inputs.

Recommended fix Moderate confidence

GraphicsMagick 1.3.27 or later stable release

  1. 1. Verify current GraphicsMagick version by running: convert --version
  2. 2. If version is exactly 1.3.26, plan for upgrade to a fixed release
  3. 3. Check your distribution's package manager for available GraphicsMagick updates: apt-cache policy graphicsmagick (Debian/Ubuntu) or yum info GraphicsMagick (RHEL/CentOS)
  4. 4. Apply the upgrade via package manager: apt-get update && apt-get install graphicsmagick or yum update GraphicsMagick
  5. 5. Verify the new version is installed: convert --version
  6. 6. Test image processing workflows, particularly PCL output operations with monochrome images
Caveat Minor - GraphicsMagick maintains high backward compatibility between point releases; test workflow validation recommended

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

Fix this in Graphicsmagick 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
Get help mitigating

An estimate, not a bill — we confirm scope with you before any work starts. Need it this week? Rush from $2,800.

Scan for this in your stack

Free · runs locally
dbcve dependency scanner

Check whether your project pulls in CVE-2017-11637 — or any other known-vulnerable package — straight from your lock files. Free and open source; it runs locally and uploads nothing.

Get it on GitHub Scan in the browser

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-2017-11637 in production — separate from our analysis above.

No notes yet

Be the first to add a field note for this CVE — a mitigation you’ve verified, a version caveat, or a link to a working fix. Sign in above to contribute.

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