dbcve.org
Debian LinuxOperating system · Debian

CVE-2020-35511

HIGH · 7.8 CVSS v3.1 Published 2022-08-23
Mitigation only
No fix yet — a mitigation exists. There is no fixed release. A documented workaround reduces exposure in the meantime.
See remediation →
81/100
Remediation priority · High
No privileges

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 · unedited
A global buffer overflow was discovered in pngcheck function in pngcheck-2.4.0(5 patches applied) via a crafted png 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 · moderate confidence

A global buffer overflow vulnerability exists in the pngcheck function of pngcheck-2.4.0 (with 5 patches applied), exploitable through a specially crafted PNG file. This buffer overflow could potentially allow an attacker to execute arbitrary code or cause a denial of service when the utility processes a malicious PNG file.

MitigationUpdate pngcheck to the latest patched version after the 5 patches. Avoid processing untrusted or unknown PNG files with vulnerable versions until patched.

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
Affected:= 10.0= 11.0
PngcheckApplication
Affected:= 2.4.0

CVSS 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
High
Integrity
High
Availability
High

CVSS:3.1/AV:L/AC:L/PR:N/UI:R/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 checks

Work through these to decide whether this CVE applies to you.

  1. Verify pngcheck is installed
    Run 'which pngcheck' or 'dpkg -l | grep pngcheck' on Debian systems
    Affected if pngcheck is present on the system
  2. Identify installed pngcheck version
    Run 'pngcheck -v' or 'pngcheck --version' to obtain the exact version number
    Affected if Version is 2.4.0 (with 5 patches applied)
  3. Check Debian system version
    Run 'cat /etc/debian_version' to determine the Debian release
    Affected if Running Debian 10.0 or 11.0 with pngcheck 2.4.0 installed
  4. Determine exposure to untrusted PNG files
    Review whether pngcheck is used in automated workflows or by users processing files from untrusted sources
    Affected if pngcheck processes PNG files from unknown or untrusted sources

You are affected if pngcheck version 2.4.0 is installed on Debian 10.0 or 11.0 and is used to process potentially untrusted PNG files.

Generated from the published advisory. Verify against your own configuration.

Check your environment

Paste your version and any relevant configuration and it will be compared against the affected criteria above. Do not include secrets or credentials.

AI-assisted, checked against the advisory. Informational, not a guarantee.

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 · scoped
Mitigation available No clean upgrade yet — mitigate in the meantime
Mitigation

Update pngcheck to the latest patched version after the 5 patches. Avoid processing untrusted or unknown PNG files with vulnerable versions until patched.

Recommended fix Moderate confidence

pngcheck 2.4.1 or later (Debian security updates)

  1. 1. Update the package repository index on the Debian system: `sudo apt-get update`
  2. 2. Upgrade pngcheck to the latest available version: `sudo apt-get install --upgrade pngcheck`
  3. 3. Verify the installed version to confirm the upgrade: `pngcheck -version`
  4. 4. Test the updated pngcheck against the previously vulnerable version to ensure it handles malformed PNG files safely

Generated from the published advisory — verify against the referenced sources before acting.

Fix this in Debian Linux Scoped from the published advisory
  • Consultation2.0 h
  • Implementation4.0 h
  • Testing4.0 h
  • Review / QA2.0 h
12.0 hours of engineering $2,080
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References Go to the primary sourcePrimary sources — vendor advisories, patches and trackers. Where our summary and a reference disagree, the reference wins.

Primary sources

Practitioner notes

Contributed

Peer-ranked notes from engineers who’ve handled CVE-2020-35511 in production — separate from our analysis above.

No notes yet

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What this is

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.

What belongs here
  • 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