binutils: Invalid memory read in find_abstract_instance_name
Published Oct 27, 2017
7.5
HIGHCVSS 3.0
EPSS 4.73%
Description
dwarf2.c in the Binary File Descriptor (BFD) library (aka libbfd), as distributed in GNU Binutils 2.29, miscalculates DW_FORM_ref_addr die refs in the case of a relocatable object file, which allows remote attackers to cause a denial of service (find_abstract_instance_name invalid memory read, segmentation fault, and application crash).
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:N/AC:L/PR:N/UI:N/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:L/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 v2
- EPSS v3
- EPSS v4
- EPSS v5
Percentile over time
- EPSS v1
- EPSS v2
- EPSS v3
- EPSS v4
- EPSS v5
Table of values (19 key points)
Flat stretches are collapsed; showing up to 120 newest points.
| Date | Score | Percentile | Model |
|---|---|---|---|
| Oct 1, 2026 | 4.73% (0.04726) | 91.56th | v5 (v2026.06.15) |
| Jun 15, 2026 | 4.73% (0.04726) | 90.64th | v5 (v2026.06.15) |
| Mar 30, 2025 | 0.59% (0.00589) | 66.62th | v4 (v2025.03.14) |
| Mar 29, 2025 | 1.72% (0.01716) | 71.00th | v4 (v2025.03.14) |
| Mar 17, 2025 | 0.59% (0.00589) | 67.29th | v4 (v2025.03.14) |
| Dec 12, 2024 | 0.94% (0.00942) | 83.78th | v3 (v2023.03.01) |
| Nov 8, 2023 | 0.94% (0.00942) | 81.30th | v3 (v2023.03.01) |
| May 8, 2023 | 0.78% (0.00784) | 78.84th | v3 (v2023.03.01) |
| Apr 29, 2023 | 0.76% (0.00763) | 78.55th | v3 (v2023.03.01) |
| Mar 20, 2023 | 0.79% (0.00794) | 78.94th | v3 (v2023.03.01) |
| Mar 7, 2023 | 0.82% (0.00820) | 79.24th | v3 (v2023.03.01) |
| Mar 6, 2023 | 1.21% (0.01213) | 66.61th | v2 (v2022.01.01) |
| Feb 17, 2023 | 1.21% (0.01213) | 66.22th | v2 (v2022.01.01) |
| Apr 1, 2022 | 1.21% (0.01213) | 64.21th | v2 (v2022.01.01) |
| Feb 4, 2022 | 1.21% (0.01213) | 40.54th | v2 (v2022.01.01) |
| Feb 3, 2022 | 1.94% (0.01943) | 48.45th | v1 |
| Jan 6, 2022 | 1.94% (0.01943) | 47.92th | v1 |
| Sep 1, 2021 | 1.94% (0.01943) | 76.51th | v1 |
| Apr 14, 2021 | 1.94% (0.01943) | 0.00th | v1 |
References (9)
- http://www.securityfocus.com/bid/101610 vdb-entryx_refsource_BID
- https://access.redhat.com/security/cve/CVE-2017-15938 Vendor Advisory
- https://blogs.gentoo.org/ago/2017/10/24/binutils-invalid-memory-read-in-find_abstract_instance_name-dwarf2-c/ x_refsource_MISCPatchThird Party AdvisoryVDB Entry
- https://bugzilla.redhat.com/show_bug.cgi?id=1515721 Issue Tracking
- https://nvd.nist.gov/vuln/detail/CVE-2017-15938
- https://security.gentoo.org/glsa/201801-01 vendor-advisoryx_refsource_GENTOO
- https://sourceware.org/bugzilla/show_bug.cgi?id=22209 x_refsource_MISCIssue TrackingPatchThird Party Advisory
- https://sourceware.org/git/gitweb.cgi?p=binutils-gdb.git%3Bh=1b86808a86077722ee4f42ff97f836b12420bb2a x_refsource_MISC
- https://www.cve.org/CVERecord?id=CVE-2017-15938
| Link | Providers | Tags |
|---|---|---|
| http://www.securityfocus.com/bid/101610 | vdb-entryx_refsource_BID | |
| https://access.redhat.com/security/cve/CVE-2017-15938 | Vendor Advisory | |
| https://blogs.gentoo.org/ago/2017/10/24/binutils-invalid-memory-read-in-find_abstract_instance_name-dwarf2-c/ | x_refsource_MISCPatchThird Party AdvisoryVDB Entry | |
| https://bugzilla.redhat.com/show_bug.cgi?id=1515721 | Issue Tracking | |
| https://nvd.nist.gov/vuln/detail/CVE-2017-15938 | ||
| https://security.gentoo.org/glsa/201801-01 | vendor-advisoryx_refsource_GENTOO | |
| https://sourceware.org/bugzilla/show_bug.cgi?id=22209 | x_refsource_MISCIssue TrackingPatchThird Party Advisory | |
| https://sourceware.org/git/gitweb.cgi?p=binutils-gdb.git%3Bh=1b86808a86077722ee4f42ff97f836b12420bb2a | x_refsource_MISC | |
| https://www.cve.org/CVERecord?id=CVE-2017-15938 |
Change history (0)
No recorded changes yet.