Debian LinuxOperating system · Debian
CVE-2017-15642
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 · uneditedIn lsx_aiffstartread in aiff.c in Sound eXchange (SoX) 14.4.2, there is a Use-After-Free vulnerability triggered by supplying a malformed AIFF file.
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 confidenceSoX 14.4.2 contains a Use-After-Free vulnerability in the lsx_aiffstartread function within aiff.c when parsing malformed AIFF audio files. The vulnerability occurs due to improper memory management during AIFF header parsing, where memory is freed and then subsequently accessed, leading to potential code execution or denial of service.
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= 14.4.2CVSS 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
- Local
- Complexity
- Low
- Privileges
- None
- User interaction
- Required
- Scope
- Unchanged
- Confidentiality
- None
- Integrity
- None
- Availability
- High
CVSS:3.0/AV:L/AC:L/PR:N/UI:R/S:U/C:N/I:N/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 SoX versionRun `sox --version` or `sox -h | head -1` to identify the installed version of SoXAffected if The version shown is 14.4.2
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Check operating system versionRun `cat /etc/debian_version` to identify the Debian releaseAffected if The system is Debian 7.0 or Debian 8.0
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Verify AIFF support is presentRun `sox --help-format aiff` or check if AIFF is listed in `sox --help-formats`Affected if AIFF format support is compiled into SoX and available for use
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Check for recent AIFF file processing activityReview any logs, scripts, or automation that process AIFF files through SoX, or inspect recent AIFF files in directories accessible to SoXAffected if SoX is actively used to read or process AIFF audio files
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Verify aiff.c is part of the buildCheck the SoX installation for the presence of aiff.c or the compiled AIFF handling module in the SoX library path (typically /usr/lib/sox or similar)Affected if The AIFF handling code is present in the SoX installation
A user is affected if they have SoX version 14.4.2 installed on Debian 7.0 or 8.0 and use SoX to process AIFF audio files.
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 dataProcess only trusted AIFF files with SoX, or update to a patched version of SoX that addresses this vulnerability. Consider implementing input validation before passing files to SoX.
Fix this in Debian Linux
Scoped from the published advisory
- Consultation4.0 h
- Implementation12.0 h
- Testing6.0 h
- Review / QA4.0 h
An estimate, not a bill — we confirm scope with you before any work starts. Need it this week? Rush from $7,328.
Scan for this in your stack
Free · runs locallyCheck whether your project pulls in CVE-2017-15642 — 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-2017-15642 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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