CVE-2024-6197

CVE-2024-6197 is a high-severity vulnerability in Haxx Libcurl with a CVSS 3.x base score of 7.5. It is not currently listed as actively exploited by CISA, and its EPSS exploit-prediction score is low.

Key facts

Description

libcurl's ASN1 parser has this utf8asn1str() function used for parsing an ASN.1 UTF-8 string. Itcan detect an invalid field and return error. Unfortunately, when doing so it also invokes `free()` on a 4 byte localstack buffer. Most modern malloc implementations detect this error and immediately abort. Some however accept the input pointer and add that memory to its list of available chunks. This leads to the overwriting of nearby stack memory. The content of the overwrite is decided by the `free()` implementation; likely to be memory pointers and a set of flags. The most likely outcome of exploting this flaw is a crash, although it cannot be ruled out that more serious results can be had in special circumstances.

Frequently asked questions

What is CVE-2024-6197?
libcurl's ASN1 parser has this utf8asn1str() function used for parsing an ASN.1 UTF-8 string. Itcan detect an invalid field and return error. Unfortunately, when doing so it also invokes `free()` on a 4 byte localstack buffer. Most modern malloc implementations detect this error and immediately abort. Some however accept the input pointer and add that memory to its list of available chunks. This leads to the overwriting of nearby stack memory. The content of the overwrite is decided by the `free()` implementation; likely to be memory pointers and a set of flags. The most likely outcome of exploting this flaw is a crash, although it cannot be ruled out that more serious results can be had in special circumstances.
How severe is CVE-2024-6197?
CVE-2024-6197 has a CVSS 3.x base score of 7.5, rated high severity. It is exploitable over network with low attack complexity, requires no privileges and no user interaction. Impact on confidentiality is none, integrity none, and availability high.
Is CVE-2024-6197 being actively exploited?
It is not currently listed in CISA's KEV catalog. Its EPSS exploit-prediction score is 4% (90th percentile), an estimate of the probability of exploitation in the next 30 days.
What products are affected by CVE-2024-6197?
CVE-2024-6197 affects Haxx Libcurl. See the affected-products list for the exact vulnerable versions.
How do I fix CVE-2024-6197?
Review the linked vendor and NVD advisories for patched versions and mitigations, then upgrade or apply the recommended workaround. Given its high severity, prioritise patching exposed systems.
Does CVE-2024-6197 have an EU (EUVD) identifier?
Yes. CVE-2024-6197 is tracked in the ENISA EU Vulnerability Database (EUVD) as EUVD-2024-47336.
When was CVE-2024-6197 published?
CVE-2024-6197 was published on 2024-07-24 and last updated on 2026-06-17.

References

Affected products (1)

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