CVE-2017-9168
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 · uneditedlibautotrace.a in AutoTrace 0.31.1 has a heap-based buffer overflow in the ReadImage function in input-bmp.c:353:25.
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 overflow vulnerability exists in AutoTrace 0.31.1's libautotrace.a library. The vulnerability occurs in the ReadImage function within input-bmp.c at line 353 when parsing BMP image files, allowing potential remote code execution via specially crafted BMP files.
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= 0.31.1CVSS 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 checksWork through these to decide whether this CVE applies to you.
-
Identify AutoTrace library versionRun 'autotrace --version' or inspect the installed libautotrace library file for version informationAffected if The installed version is exactly 0.31.1
-
Confirm BMP input processing is in useDetermine whether the AutoTrace library is being used to parse BMP image filesAffected if BMP files are being processed by the vulnerable version of the library
-
Locate the ReadImage function in input-bmp.cExamine the input-bmp.c source file from the libautotrace library and locate the ReadImage function around line 353Affected if The vulnerable ReadImage function exists and processes BMP file data without proper bounds checking
If AutoTrace version 0.31.1 is installed and BMP image files are being processed through the libautotrace library, the environment contains the heap-based buffer overflow vulnerability in the ReadImage function.
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.
dbcve · scopedUpdate to a patched version of AutoTrace if available; otherwise, implement proper bounds checking in the ReadImage function at input-bmp.c:353 to validate BMP image data sizes against allocated heap buffers before copying data.
Latest stable AutoTrace release (version > 0.31.1) from the official project repository or distribution package repository
- 1. Identify the current AutoTrace version installed on the system using 'autotrace --version' or checking package manager
- 2. If version 0.31.1 is installed, check if a newer stable release is available from the project repository or your distribution's package repository
- 3. Upgrade to the latest stable release of AutoTrace that contains the fix for the heap-based buffer overflow in input-bmp.c
- 4. Verify the upgrade was successful by running 'autotrace --version'
- 5. Test that BMP image processing functionality works correctly with the upgraded version
- 6. If upgrading is not immediately possible, consider implementing input validation on BMP files before processing with autotrace, or restrict autotrace usage to trusted input sources
Generated from the published advisory — verify against the referenced sources before acting.
- Consultation3.0 h
- Implementation6.0 h
- Testing5.0 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 $4,752.
Scan for this in your stack
Free · runs locallyCheck whether your project pulls in CVE-2017-9168 — 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-2017-9168 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
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.
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.
- 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