#VU96897 Buffer Underwrite ('Buffer Underflow') in expat - CVE-2024-45490

Vulnerability identifier: #VU96897

Vulnerability risk: High

CVSSv4.0: 8.1 [CVSS:4.0/AV:N/AC:L/AT:N/PR:N/UI:N/VC:H/VI:H/VA:H/SC:N/SI:N/SA:N/E:U/U:Amber]

CVE-ID: CVE-2024-45490

CWE-ID: CWE-124

Exploitation vector: Network

Exploit availability: No

Vulnerable software:
expat
Universal components / Libraries / Libraries used by multiple products

Vendor: libexpat.org

Description

The vulnerability allows a remote attacker to compromise the affected system.

The vulnerability exists due to a boundary error in xmlparse.c when handling negative length for XML_ParseBuffer. A remote attacker can pass specially crafted input to the application, trigger buffer underflow and execute arbitrary code on the system.

Mitigation
Install updates from vendor's website.

Vulnerable software versions

expat: 2.0.0 - 2.6.2

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External links
http://github.com/libexpat/libexpat/pull/890
http://github.com/libexpat/libexpat/issues/887

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Q & A

Can this vulnerability be exploited remotely?

Yes. This vulnerability can be exploited by a remote non-authenticated attacker via the Internet.

Is there known malware, which exploits this vulnerability?

No. We are not aware of malware exploiting this vulnerability.