CVE-2017-18245
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 · uneditedThe mpc8_probe function in libavformat/mpc8.c in Libav 12.2 allows remote attackers to cause a denial of service (heap-based buffer over-read) via a crafted audio 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 · high confidenceA heap-based buffer over-read vulnerability exists in the mpc8_probe function within libavformat/mpc8.c of Libav 12.2. When parsing a specially crafted MPC8 audio file, the function fails to properly validate buffer boundaries before reading, allowing an attacker to trigger an out-of-bounds heap read leading to 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= 12.2CVSS 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
- None
- Integrity
- None
- Availability
- High
CVSS:3.0/AV:N/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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Identify if Libav is installedRun 'avconv -version' or 'ffmpeg -version' (note: some systems have Libav as ffmpeg) to check for Libav binaries and librariesAffected if Libav is present on the system
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Confirm the Libav versionCheck the version output from the previous step and compare it to the affected version 12.2Affected if The installed version is exactly 12.2
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Determine if MPC8 audio file parsing is in useInspect any application logs, configurations, or processes that handle audio file processing to see if MPC8 files are being parsedAffected if MPC8 audio files are being processed by the Libav installation
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Verify the mpc8_probe function is accessibleCheck if the libavformat library containing mpc8.c is loaded at runtime when processing audio files, typically via library dependency analysis or process memory inspection during MPC8 file handlingAffected if The mpc8_probe function in libavformat/mpc8.c is invoked during audio file analysis
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Check for crafted MPC8 file processing capabilityReview any file upload, media processing, or transcoding workflows that accept audio files to see if they can receive and parse MPC8 format filesAffected if The system processes MPC8 audio files through Libav
A system is affected if Libav version 12.2 is installed and MPC8 audio files are being parsed through the libavformat mpc8_probe function, enabling the heap-based buffer over-read to trigger.
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 dataUpdate Libav to a patched version if available, or implement proper bounds checking in the mpc8_probe function to validate buffer size before reading audio metadata fields.
- Consultation2.0 h
- Implementation4.0 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 $3,088.
Scan for this in your stack
Free · runs locallyCheck whether your project pulls in CVE-2017-18245 — 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-2017-18245 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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