pcre: self-recursive call in match() in pcre_exec.c leads to denial of service
Published Mar 17, 2019
5.5
MEDIUMCVSS 3.1
EPSS 0.54%
Description
In PCRE 8.41, after compiling, a pcretest load test PoC produces a crash overflow in the function match() in pcre_exec.c because of a self-recursive call. NOTE: third parties dispute the relevance of this report, noting that there are options that can be used to limit the amount of stack that is used
Affected products
No data.
-
- Version 8.41StatusaffectedConstraints-
- Version
Red Hat Enterprise Linux 5
pcre
Not affected
Red Hat Enterprise Linux 6
chromium-browser
Not affected
Red Hat Enterprise Linux 6
firefox
Not affected
Red Hat Enterprise Linux 6
glib2
Not affected
Red Hat Enterprise Linux 6
pcre
Not affected
Red Hat Enterprise Linux 6
thunderbird
Not affected
Red Hat Enterprise Linux 7
glib2
Not affected
Red Hat Enterprise Linux 7
pcre
Not affected
Red Hat Enterprise Linux 7
virtuoso-opensource
Not affected
Red Hat Enterprise Linux 8
mingw-pcre
Not affected
Red Hat Enterprise Linux 8
pcre
Not affected
Red Hat JBoss Core Services
pcre
Not affected
Red Hat JBoss Enterprise Application Platform 5
httpd
Not affected
Red Hat JBoss Enterprise Application Platform 6
httpd
Not affected
Red Hat JBoss Enterprise Web Server 1
httpd
Not affected
Red Hat JBoss Enterprise Web Server 1
pcre
Not affected
Red Hat JBoss Enterprise Web Server 2
httpd
Not affected
Red Hat Software Collections
rh-mariadb100-mariadb
Not affected
Red Hat Software Collections
rh-mariadb101-mariadb
Not affected
Red Hat Software Collections
rh-php70-php
Not affected
| Product | Package | State | Advisory |
|---|---|---|---|
| Red Hat Enterprise Linux 5 | pcre | Not affected | n/a |
| Red Hat Enterprise Linux 6 | chromium-browser | Not affected | n/a |
| Red Hat Enterprise Linux 6 | firefox | Not affected | n/a |
| Red Hat Enterprise Linux 6 | glib2 | Not affected | n/a |
| Red Hat Enterprise Linux 6 | pcre | Not affected | n/a |
| Red Hat Enterprise Linux 6 | thunderbird | Not affected | n/a |
| Red Hat Enterprise Linux 7 | glib2 | Not affected | n/a |
| Red Hat Enterprise Linux 7 | pcre | Not affected | n/a |
| Red Hat Enterprise Linux 7 | virtuoso-opensource | Not affected | n/a |
| Red Hat Enterprise Linux 8 | mingw-pcre | Not affected | n/a |
| Red Hat Enterprise Linux 8 | pcre | Not affected | n/a |
| Red Hat JBoss Core Services | pcre | Not affected | n/a |
| Red Hat JBoss Enterprise Application Platform 5 | httpd | Not affected | n/a |
| Red Hat JBoss Enterprise Application Platform 6 | httpd | Not affected | n/a |
| Red Hat JBoss Enterprise Web Server 1 | httpd | Not affected | n/a |
| Red Hat JBoss Enterprise Web Server 1 | pcre | Not affected | n/a |
| Red Hat JBoss Enterprise Web Server 2 | httpd | Not affected | n/a |
| Red Hat Software Collections | rh-mariadb100-mariadb | Not affected | n/a |
| Red Hat Software Collections | rh-mariadb101-mariadb | Not affected | n/a |
| Red Hat Software Collections | rh-php70-php | Not affected | n/a |
No package ranges for this CVE.
Remediation
Red Hat statement
Red Hat Product Security determined that this flaw was not a security vulnerability. See the Bugzilla link for more details.
Metrics
No CVSS v4.0 score for this CVE.
CVSS:3.1/AV:L/AC:L/PR:L/UI:N/S:U/C:N/I:N/A:H
CVSS:3.0/AV:L/AC:L/PR:L/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:H
AV:L/AC:L/Au:N/C:N/I:N/A:P
This CVE is not in the KEV list.
CISA SSVC (Vulnrichment)
Stakeholder-Specific Vulnerability Categorization from CISA ADP.
Exploitation
PoCAutomatable
NoTechnical Impact
PartialDecision
n/aAssessed Jun 26, 2024 · SSVC 2.0.3
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 (15 key points)
Flat stretches are collapsed; showing up to 120 newest points.
| Date | Score | Percentile | Model |
|---|---|---|---|
| Oct 1, 2026 | 0.54% (0.00544) | 43.62th | v5 (v2026.06.15) |
| Jun 15, 2026 | 0.52% (0.00524) | 40.04th | v5 (v2026.06.15) |
| Mar 17, 2025 | 0.10% (0.00096) | 24.64th | v4 (v2025.03.14) |
| Dec 12, 2024 | 0.08% (0.00083) | 37.31th | v3 (v2023.03.01) |
| Jul 13, 2024 | 0.08% (0.00083) | 36.02th | v3 (v2023.03.01) |
| Mar 10, 2024 | 0.08% (0.00083) | 34.00th | v3 (v2023.03.01) |
| Mar 7, 2023 | 0.07% (0.00070) | 28.58th | v3 (v2023.03.01) |
| Mar 6, 2023 | 1.10% (0.01104) | 54.09th | v2 (v2022.01.01) |
| Sep 17, 2022 | 1.10% (0.01104) | 52.45th | v2 (v2022.01.01) |
| Apr 1, 2022 | 1.10% (0.01104) | 50.41th | v2 (v2022.01.01) |
| Feb 4, 2022 | 1.10% (0.01104) | 28.85th | v2 (v2022.01.01) |
| Feb 3, 2022 | 1.86% (0.01865) | 48.06th | v1 |
| Jan 6, 2022 | 1.86% (0.01865) | 47.54th | v1 |
| Sep 1, 2021 | 1.86% (0.01865) | 76.13th | v1 |
| Apr 14, 2021 | 1.86% (0.01865) | 0.00th | v1 |
References (12)
- http://packetstormsecurity.com/files/150897/PCRE-8.41-Buffer-Overflow.html x_refsource_MISCThird Party AdvisoryVDB Entry
- http://seclists.org/fulldisclosure/2018/Dec/33 x_refsource_MISCMailing ListThird Party Advisory
- http://www.openwall.com/lists/oss-security/2017/11/01/11 x_refsource_MISCMailing ListThird Party Advisory
- http://www.openwall.com/lists/oss-security/2017/11/01/3 x_refsource_MISCExploitMailing ListThird Party Advisory
- http://www.openwall.com/lists/oss-security/2017/11/01/7 x_refsource_MISCMailing ListThird Party Advisory
- http://www.openwall.com/lists/oss-security/2017/11/01/8 x_refsource_MISCExploitMailing ListThird Party Advisory
- http://www.securityfocus.com/bid/101688 x_refsource_MISCThird Party AdvisoryVDB Entry
- https://access.redhat.com/security/cve/CVE-2017-16231 Vendor Advisory
- https://bugs.exim.org/show_bug.cgi?id=2047 x_refsource_CONFIRMIssue TrackingThird Party Advisory
- https://bugzilla.redhat.com/show_bug.cgi?id=1700392 Issue Tracking
- https://nvd.nist.gov/vuln/detail/CVE-2017-16231
- https://www.cve.org/CVERecord?id=CVE-2017-16231
Change history (0)
No recorded changes yet.