CVE-2018-25014 – CVE-2018-25014 is a use-after-free vulnerabilit... (How to Fix)

Q: What is the severity of CVE-2018-25014?

CVE-2018-25014 has a CVSS score of 9.8 (CRITICAL). CVE-2018-25014 is a use-after-free vulnerability in libwebp's ReadSymbol() function that allows attackers to execute arbitrary code or cause denial of service. This affects any application using libwebp versions before 1.0.1 to process WebP images, including web browsers, image processing tools, and media libraries.

📋 TL;DR

CVE-2018-25014 is a use-after-free vulnerability in libwebp's ReadSymbol() function that allows attackers to execute arbitrary code or cause denial of service. This affects any application using libwebp versions before 1.0.1 to process WebP images, including web browsers, image processing tools, and media libraries.

💻 Affected Systems

Products:

libwebp
Google Chrome
Mozilla Firefox
Android
iOS
various Linux distributions
applications using libwebp library

Versions: libwebp versions before 1.0.1

Operating Systems: Linux, Windows, macOS, Android, iOS

Default Config Vulnerable: ⚠️ Yes

Notes: Any application linking against vulnerable libwebp versions is affected when processing WebP images.

📦 What is this software?

⚠️ Risk & Real-World Impact

🔴

Worst Case

Remote code execution with full system compromise, potentially leading to complete system takeover and data exfiltration.

🟠

Likely Case

Application crash (denial of service) or limited memory corruption leading to information disclosure.

🟢

If Mitigated

Application crash with no further impact if proper sandboxing and memory protections are enabled.

🌐 Internet-Facing: HIGH - WebP images are commonly processed by internet-facing services and web applications.

🏢 Internal Only: MEDIUM - Internal applications processing WebP images could be exploited through malicious files.

🎯 Exploit Status

Public PoC: ⚠️ Yes

Weaponized: LIKELY

Unauthenticated Exploit: ⚠️ Yes

Complexity: MEDIUM

Exploitation requires processing a specially crafted WebP image. Public proof-of-concept exists in OSS-Fuzz reports.

🛠️ Fix & Mitigation

✅ Official Fix

Patch Version: libwebp 1.0.1 and later

Vendor Advisory: https://chromium.googlesource.com/webm/libwebp/+log/78ad57a36ad69a9c22874b182d49d64125c380f2..907208f97ead639bd52

Restart Required: Yes

Instructions:

1. Update libwebp to version 1.0.1 or later. 2. Update dependent applications (browsers, image processors). 3. Restart affected services. 4. For Linux: Use package manager (apt/yum/dnf) to update libwebp packages.

🔧 Temporary Workarounds

Disable WebP processing

all

Temporarily disable WebP image processing in applications if possible

Application sandboxing

all

Run vulnerable applications in sandboxed environments with limited privileges

🧯 If You Can't Patch

Implement strict input validation for WebP files
Deploy network segmentation and restrict access to vulnerable systems

🔍 How to Verify

Check if Vulnerable:

Check libwebp version: 'libwebp --version' or 'dpkg -l | grep libwebp' or 'rpm -qa | grep libwebp'

Check Version:

libwebp --version 2>/dev/null || echo "libwebp not in PATH"

Verify Fix Applied:

Verify libwebp version is 1.0.1 or later using version check commands

📡 Detection & Monitoring

Log Indicators:

Application crashes when processing WebP images
Memory access violation errors
Segmentation faults in libwebp processes

Network Indicators:

Unusual WebP file uploads to web applications
Multiple failed image processing attempts

SIEM Query:

source="application.log" AND ("segmentation fault" OR "memory violation" OR "libwebp")

📊 Metadata

CVE ID: CVE-2018-25014

CVSS v3 Score: 9.8 (CRITICAL)

CVSS Vector: CVSS:3.1/AV:N/AC:L/PR:N/UI:N/S:U/C:H/I:H/A:H

CWE: CWE-908

Published: May 21, 2021

Last Updated: November 21, 2024

🔗 References

https://bugs.chromium.org/p/oss-fuzz/issues/detail?id=9496 Third Party Advisory
https://bugzilla.redhat.com/show_bug.cgi?id=1956927 Issue Tracking,Patch,Third Party Advisory
https://chromium.googlesource.com/webm/libwebp/+log/78ad57a36ad69a9c22874b182d49d64125c380f2..907208f97ead639bd52 Third Party Advisory
https://bugs.chromium.org/p/oss-fuzz/issues/detail?id=9496 Third Party Advisory
https://bugzilla.redhat.com/show_bug.cgi?id=1956927 Issue Tracking,Patch,Third Party Advisory
https://chromium.googlesource.com/webm/libwebp/+log/78ad57a36ad69a9c22874b182d49d64125c380f2..907208f97ead639bd52 Third Party Advisory

📤 Share & Export

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🔗 Related Vulnerabilities

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