CVE-2018-14044
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 RateTransposer::setChannels function in RateTransposer.cpp in libSoundTouch.a in Olli Parviainen SoundTouch 2.0 allows remote attackers to cause a denial of service (assertion failure and application exit), as demonstrated by SoundStretch.
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 denial-of-service vulnerability exists in the RateTransposer::setChannels function in RateTransposer.cpp of the SoundTouch 2.0 library. The function fails to properly validate the channel count parameter before use, leading to an assertion failure when an attacker supplies a malformed or unexpected channel value, causing the application to exit unexpectedly.
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= 2.0.0CVSS 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
- None
- Integrity
- None
- Availability
- High
CVSS:3.0/AV:N/AC:L/PR:N/UI:N/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 SoundTouch installationLocate the SoundTouch library files (libSoundTouch.so, SoundTouch.dll, or similar) or check if the application links against SoundTouch. Search for SoundTouch headers or library files in the system.Affected if SoundTouch library version 2.0.0 is present in the environment
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Confirm exact version numberRun 'strings' on the library file or check the version metadata. If source code is available, check the version define in SoundTouch.h or similar header (e.g., #define SOUNDTOUCH_VERSION "2.0.0").Affected if The installed version is exactly 2.0.0
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Check if RateTransposer module is usedInspect application code or binary to determine if RateTransposer class is instantiated or if setChannels method is called. Search for 'RateTransposer' or 'setChannels' in the codebase or imported symbols.Affected if The application uses the RateTransposer class which contains the vulnerable setChannels function
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Identify setChannels input sourceReview code that calls setChannels to determine if the channel parameter comes from untrusted external input (file, network, user input) rather than hardcoded values.Affected if The channel parameter passed to setChannels can be controlled by external input without validation
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Check for input validation before setChannelsInspect the code paths leading to setChannels calls. Look for any validation logic (checks for zero, negative, or excessively large channel values) before the setChannels function is invoked.Affected if No validation exists on the channel count before calling setChannels, allowing malformed values to reach the function
The environment is affected if SoundTouch version 2.0.0 is in use, the RateTransposer class with setChannels is invoked, and the channel parameter can be controlled by external input without prior validation.
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 SoundTouch to the latest version which should include proper input validation in the setChannels function, or add explicit validation of the channel parameter to reject invalid values (e.g., zero, negative, or excessively large channel counts) before processing.
- Consultation2.0 h
- Implementation4.0 h
- Testing6.0 h
- Review / QA2.0 h
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Free · runs locallyCheck whether your project pulls in CVE-2018-14044 — 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-2018-14044 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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