CVE-2020-6149
📋 TL;DR
A heap overflow vulnerability in Pixar OpenUSD 20.05 allows attackers to execute arbitrary code or cause denial of service by tricking users into opening specially crafted USD binary files. This affects any application or service that processes USDC file format files using vulnerable OpenUSD libraries.
💻 Affected Systems
- Pixar OpenUSD
📦 What is this software?
Openusd by Pixar
⚠️ Risk & Real-World Impact
Worst Case
Remote code execution with the privileges of the user opening the malicious file, potentially leading to full system compromise.
Likely Case
Application crash (denial of service) when processing malformed files, with potential for code execution in targeted attacks.
If Mitigated
Limited to denial of service if memory protections (ASLR, DEP) are effective, or blocked entirely by file validation.
🎯 Exploit Status
Exploitation requires crafting a malicious USDC file with malformed compressed sections in the PATHS section. The Talos report includes technical details that could facilitate exploitation.
🛠️ Fix & Mitigation
✅ Official Fix
Patch Version: OpenUSD versions after 20.05 (20.08 or later)
Vendor Advisory: https://talosintelligence.com/vulnerability_reports/TALOS-2020-1094
Restart Required: Yes
Instructions:
1. Upgrade OpenUSD to version 20.08 or later. 2. Rebuild any applications using OpenUSD libraries. 3. Restart affected services or applications.
🔧 Temporary Workarounds
File validation filter
allImplement file validation to reject malformed USDC files before processing
Sandbox USD file processing
allRun USD file processing in isolated containers or sandboxes with limited privileges
🧯 If You Can't Patch
- Implement strict file upload controls and user education about opening untrusted USD files
- Use application allowlisting to prevent execution of vulnerable USD processing components
🔍 How to Verify
Check if Vulnerable:
Check if OpenUSD version is 20.05 using 'usdview --version' or check library versions in applicationsCheck Version:
usdview --version 2>&1 | grep -i versionVerify Fix Applied:
Confirm OpenUSD version is 20.08 or later and test with known safe USD files📡 Detection & Monitoring
Log Indicators:
- Application crashes when processing USD files
- Memory access violation errors in application logs
Network Indicators:
- Unusual file uploads with .usdc extension
- Network transfers of USD files to vulnerable systems
SIEM Query:
source="application.log" AND ("segmentation fault" OR "access violation" OR "heap corruption") AND "usd"