Debian LinuxOperating system · Debian
CVE-2017-14440
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 · uneditedAn exploitable code execution vulnerability exists in the ILBM image rendering functionality of SDL2_image-2.0.2. A specially crafted ILBM image can cause a stack overflow resulting in code execution. An attacker can display a specially crafted image to trigger this vulnerability.
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 confidenceA stack overflow vulnerability exists in the ILBM image rendering functionality of SDL2_image version 2.0.2. When parsing a specially crafted ILBM (Interchangeable Lead Format) image, the affected code fails to properly validate bounds, leading to stack corruption that can be leveraged for arbitrary code execution.
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
Debian LinuxOperating system
= 7.0= 8.0= 9.0= 2.0.2CVSS 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
- Required
- Scope
- Unchanged
- Confidentiality
- High
- Integrity
- High
- Availability
- High
CVSS:3.1/AV:N/AC:L/PR:N/UI:R/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 checksWork through these to decide whether this CVE applies to you.
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Check installed SDL2_image versionRun 'pkg-config --modversion SDL2_image' or check your system's package manager (dpkg -l libsdl2-image-2.0-0 on Debian)Affected if The version reported is 2.0.2 exactly, or falls within the 2.0.x range on affected Debian systems (7.x, 8.x, 9.x) that shipped SDL2_image 2.0.2
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Verify ILBM image format support is presentCheck if the SDL2_image library on your system includes ILBM decoding capability - inspect the library file or check if 'ILBM' appears in the library's supported formats output (some builds list supported formats via tools or documentation)Affected if ILBM support is compiled into or loaded by your SDL2_image installation
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Confirm applications use SDL2_image for image loadingIdentify applications on your system that link against or load SDL2_image (use 'ldd' on binaries or check application dependencies) and determine if they process user-supplied or untrusted image filesAffected if Applications using SDL2_image are present and can be used to open image files from untrusted sources
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Check Debian system package versionOn Debian-based systems, run 'apt-cache policy libsdl2-image-2.0-0' to see installed and available versionsAffected if The installed package version is 2.0.2-1 or similar on Debian 7, 8, or 9, indicating the vulnerable version is in use
You are affected if SDL2_image version 2.0.2 is installed on a Debian 7, 8, or 9 system and applications using this library can load ILBM format images from untrusted sources.
Generated from the published advisory. Verify against your own configuration.
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 dataAvoid opening untrusted or unverified ILBM image files in applications using SDL2_image. Upgrade to a patched version of SDL2_image once available and implement input validation on all image files before rendering.
Fix this in Debian Linux
Scoped from the published advisory
- Consultation2.0 h
- Implementation4.0 h
- Testing6.0 h
- Review / QA3.0 h
An estimate, not a bill — we confirm scope with you before any work starts. Need it this week? Rush from $4,096.
Scan for this in your stack
Free · runs locallyCheck whether your project pulls in CVE-2017-14440 — or any other known-vulnerable package — straight from your lock files. Free and open source; it runs locally and uploads nothing.
References Go to the primary sourcePrimary sources — vendor advisories, patches and trackers. Where our summary and a reference disagree, the reference wins.
Primary sourcesPractitioner notes
ContributedPeer-ranked notes from engineers who’ve handled CVE-2017-14440 in production — separate from our analysis above.
The advisory tells you what broke. It rarely tells you what actually worked. If you’ve dealt with this one, that detail is what the next engineer is searching for.
- The version that genuinely resolved it — not the one the vendor claimed
- A config change or rule that shut the vector down
- A gotcha in the upgrade path that cost you an afternoon
No notes yet
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- Version or environment caveats, and links to real fixes
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