binutils: Excessive memory allocation in _bfd_elf_slurp_version_tables
Published Sep 29, 2017
5.5
MEDIUMCVSS 3.0
EPSS 2.02%
Description
_bfd_elf_slurp_version_tables in elf.c in the Binary File Descriptor (BFD) library (aka libbfd), as distributed in GNU Binutils 2.29, allows remote attackers to cause a denial of service (excessive memory allocation and application crash) via a crafted ELF file.
Affected products
No data.
No data.
Red Hat Enterprise Linux 5
binutils
Will not fix
Red Hat Enterprise Linux 5
binutils220
Will not fix
Red Hat Enterprise Linux 6
binutils
Will not fix
Red Hat Enterprise Linux 7
binutils
Will not fix
| Product | Package | State | Advisory |
|---|---|---|---|
| Red Hat Enterprise Linux 5 | binutils | Will not fix | n/a |
| Red Hat Enterprise Linux 5 | binutils220 | Will not fix | n/a |
| Red Hat Enterprise Linux 6 | binutils | Will not fix | n/a |
| Red Hat Enterprise Linux 7 | binutils | Will not fix | n/a |
No package ranges for this CVE.
Remediation
No remediation recorded yet.
Metrics
No CVSS v4.0 score for this CVE.
No CVSS v3.1 score for this CVE.
CVSS:3.0/AV:L/AC:L/PR:N/UI:R/S:U/C:N/I:N/A:H
1 other source (Red Hat) ▾
CVSS:3.0/AV:L/AC:L/PR:N/UI:R/S:U/C:N/I:N/A:L
AV:N/AC:M/Au:N/C:N/I:N/A:P
This CVE is not in the KEV list.
No CISA SSVC assessment for this CVE yet.
Estimated probability of exploitation in the wild in the next 30 days (FIRST EPSS). As of Oct 1, 2026.
Score over time
2021–2026- EPSS v1
- EPSS v5
- EPSS v2
- EPSS v3
- EPSS v4
Percentile over time
- EPSS v1
- EPSS v5
- EPSS v2
- EPSS v3
- EPSS v4
Table of values (20 key points)
Flat stretches are collapsed; showing up to 120 newest points.
| Date | Score | Percentile | Model |
|---|---|---|---|
| Oct 1, 2026 | 2.02% (0.02024) | 80.27th | v5 (v2026.06.15) |
| Sep 22, 2026 | 2.02% (0.02024) | 80.13th | v5 (v2026.06.15) |
| Sep 21, 2026 | 3.60% (0.03602) | 88.96th | v5 (v2026.06.15) |
| Sep 6, 2026 | 2.02% (0.02024) | 79.70th | v5 (v2026.06.15) |
| Sep 5, 2026 | 3.60% (0.03602) | 88.72th | v5 (v2026.06.15) |
| Aug 30, 2026 | 2.02% (0.02024) | 79.60th | v5 (v2026.06.15) |
| Aug 28, 2026 | 3.60% (0.03602) | 88.65th | v5 (v2026.06.15) |
| Aug 24, 2026 | 2.02% (0.02024) | 79.49th | v5 (v2026.06.15) |
| Aug 23, 2026 | 3.60% (0.03602) | 88.60th | v5 (v2026.06.15) |
| Jun 15, 2026 | 2.02% (0.02024) | 78.39th | v5 (v2026.06.15) |
| Mar 17, 2025 | 0.13% (0.00129) | 29.88th | v4 (v2025.03.14) |
| Dec 12, 2024 | 0.27% (0.00270) | 68.70th | v3 (v2023.03.01) |
| Feb 8, 2024 | 0.27% (0.00269) | 66.83th | v3 (v2023.03.01) |
| Sep 9, 2023 | 0.27% (0.00269) | 63.67th | v3 (v2023.03.01) |
| Sep 3, 2023 | 0.23% (0.00227) | 60.28th | v3 (v2023.03.01) |
| Mar 7, 2023 | 0.26% (0.00262) | 62.09th | v3 (v2023.03.01) |
| Mar 6, 2023 | 1.21% (0.01213) | 66.61th | v2 (v2022.01.01) |
| Feb 4, 2022 | 1.21% (0.01213) | 40.54th | v2 (v2022.01.01) |
| Feb 3, 2022 | 1.62% (0.01623) | 33.90th | v5 (v2026.06.15) |
| Apr 14, 2021 | 1.62% (0.01623) | 0.00th | v1 |
References (8)
- http://www.securityfocus.com/bid/101212 vdb-entryx_refsource_BIDThird Party AdvisoryVDB Entry
- https://access.redhat.com/security/cve/CVE-2017-14938 Vendor Advisory
- https://blogs.gentoo.org/ago/2017/09/26/binutils-memory-allocation-failure-in-_bfd_elf_slurp_version_tables-elf-c/ x_refsource_MISCPatchThird Party AdvisoryVDB Entry
- https://bugzilla.redhat.com/show_bug.cgi?id=1500339 Issue Tracking
- https://nvd.nist.gov/vuln/detail/CVE-2017-14938
- https://sourceware.org/bugzilla/show_bug.cgi?id=22166 x_refsource_MISCIssue TrackingPatch
- https://sourceware.org/git/gitweb.cgi?p=binutils-gdb.git%3Bh=bd61e135492ecf624880e6b78e5fcde3c9716df6 x_refsource_MISC
- https://www.cve.org/CVERecord?id=CVE-2017-14938
| Link | Providers | Tags |
|---|---|---|
| http://www.securityfocus.com/bid/101212 | vdb-entryx_refsource_BIDThird Party AdvisoryVDB Entry | |
| https://access.redhat.com/security/cve/CVE-2017-14938 | Vendor Advisory | |
| https://blogs.gentoo.org/ago/2017/09/26/binutils-memory-allocation-failure-in-_bfd_elf_slurp_version_tables-elf-c/ | x_refsource_MISCPatchThird Party AdvisoryVDB Entry | |
| https://bugzilla.redhat.com/show_bug.cgi?id=1500339 | Issue Tracking | |
| https://nvd.nist.gov/vuln/detail/CVE-2017-14938 | ||
| https://sourceware.org/bugzilla/show_bug.cgi?id=22166 | x_refsource_MISCIssue TrackingPatch | |
| https://sourceware.org/git/gitweb.cgi?p=binutils-gdb.git%3Bh=bd61e135492ecf624880e6b78e5fcde3c9716df6 | x_refsource_MISC | |
| https://www.cve.org/CVERecord?id=CVE-2017-14938 |
Change history (0)
No recorded changes yet.