Debian LinuxOperating system · Debian
CVE-2019-15531
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 · uneditedGNU Libextractor through 1.9 has a heap-based buffer over-read in the function EXTRACTOR_dvi_extract_method in plugins/dvi_extractor.c.
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 confidenceGNU Libextractor through version 1.9 contains a heap-based buffer over-read vulnerability in the DVI (DeVice Independent file format) extractor plugin. The flaw exists in the EXTRACTOR_dvi_extract_method function within plugins/dvi_extractor.c, allowing an attacker to potentially read beyond allocated heap memory boundaries when processing specially crafted DVI 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
Debian LinuxOperating system
= 8.0= 9.0
FedoraOperating system
= 29= 30= 31<= 1.9CVSS 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:3.1/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 GNU Libextractor is installedRun command: dpkg -l | grep libextractor (Debian) or rpm -qa | grep libextractor (Fedora). Also check for binary: which extract or locate extract metadata executables.Affected if GNU Libextractor package is present on the system
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Determine the installed version of GNU LibextractorRun: extract --version or dpkg -s libextractor (Debian) or rpm -qi libextractor (Fedora). Compare the version number to the affected range <= 1.9.Affected if The installed version is 1.9 or lower, or the version cannot be determined (indicating it may be an unpatched older build)
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Locate the DVI extractor pluginCheck for the presence of plugins/dvi_extractor.c in source installations, or locate the compiled DVI plugin shared library (typically libextractor_dvi.so or similar in /usr/lib/libextractor/ or /usr/libexec/ directory).Affected if The DVI plugin file exists on the system
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Determine if DVI file processing is enabledReview application configuration or logs that use GNU Libextractor to see if DVI format support is active. Check for any disabled plugin configurations or MIME type filters that might exclude DVI files.Affected if DVI file processing is not explicitly disabled and the application processes DVI files from external or untrusted sources
The system is affected if GNU Libextractor version 1.9 or lower is installed and DVI file processing is enabled, as the heap buffer over-read in the DVI extractor will trigger when processing specially crafted DVI 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 dataUpdate to a patched version of GNU Libextractor if available, or avoid processing untrusted DVI files until a fix is applied. Input validation and bounds checking should be implemented in the affected function.
Fix this in Debian Linux
Scoped from the published advisory
- Consultation2.0 h
- Implementation4.0 h
- Testing4.0 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 $3,328.
Scan for this in your stack
Free · runs locallyCheck whether your project pulls in CVE-2019-15531 — 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-2019-15531 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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