Debian LinuxOperating system · Debian
CVE-2017-17788
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 GIMP 2.8.22, there is a stack-based buffer over-read in xcf_load_stream in app/xcf/xcf.c when there is no '\0' character after the version string.
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 confidenceA stack-based buffer over-read vulnerability exists in GIMP's XCF file parser. The xcf_load_stream function in app/xcf/xcf.c fails to properly handle XCF files that lack a null terminator after the version string, causing it to read beyond the buffer boundary on the stack. This could allow a specially crafted malicious XCF file to cause information disclosure or application crash.
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
Ubuntu LinuxOperating system
= 14.04= 2.8.22CVSS 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:3.1/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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Verify GIMP is installedRun 'gimp --version' or check package manager (dpkg -l | grep gimp or rpm -q gimp)Affected if GIMP is not installed on the system, the vulnerability does not apply
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Confirm installed GIMP versionRun 'gimp --version' to get the exact version number and compare it to 2.8.22Affected if The installed version is 2.8.22, indicating a potential match to the affected version
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Check for XCF file supportVerify that the XCF file format handler is present in the GIMP installation - inspect app/xcf/ directory or try loading an XCF fileAffected if XCF file support is disabled or not compiled into the GIMP installation, the vulnerable code path is not reachable
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Determine if processing untrusted XCF files is possibleCheck if the system has any user-accessible XCF files or if GIMP is configured to handle XCF files from external sourcesAffected if Users can open or process XCF files through GIMP, the vulnerability could be triggered
The system is affected if GIMP version 2.8.22 is installed and users can open XCF files through the application.
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 XCF files from untrusted sources. The vulnerability is fixed by adding proper null-termination and bounds checking in the xcf_load_stream function before performing string operations.
Fix this in Debian Linux
Scoped from the published advisory
- Consultation2.0 h
- Implementation1.0 h
- Testing3.0 h
- Review / QA2.0 h
An estimate, not a bill — we confirm scope with you before any work starts. Need it this week? Rush from $2,224.
Scan for this in your stack
Free · runs locallyCheck whether your project pulls in CVE-2017-17788 — 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-2017-17788 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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- 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
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