CVE-2024-53580 – CVE-2024-53580 is a NULL pointer dereference vu... (How to Fix)

📋 TL;DR

CVE-2024-53580 is a NULL pointer dereference vulnerability in iperf v3.17.1 that causes a segmentation fault via the iperf_exchange_parameters() function. This allows remote attackers to crash the iperf service, causing denial of service. Anyone running iperf v3.17.1 for network performance testing is affected.

💻 Affected Systems

Products:

iperf

Versions: iperf v3.17.1

Operating Systems: All operating systems running iperf

Default Config Vulnerable: ⚠️ Yes

Notes: Only affects iperf v3.17.1. Earlier versions and later versions are not vulnerable.

📦 What is this software?

⚠️ Risk & Real-World Impact

🔴

Worst Case

Complete denial of service of the iperf service, disrupting network performance testing and monitoring capabilities.

🟠

Likely Case

Service crash requiring manual restart of iperf processes, causing temporary disruption to network testing.

🟢

If Mitigated

Minimal impact if iperf is not internet-facing and proper network segmentation is in place.

🌐 Internet-Facing: MEDIUM - iperf servers exposed to untrusted networks could be crashed by attackers, but impact is limited to DoS.

🏢 Internal Only: LOW - Internal attackers could crash the service, but this requires network access and provides limited benefit.

🎯 Exploit Status

Public PoC: ⚠️ Yes

Weaponized: LIKELY

Unauthenticated Exploit: ⚠️ Yes

Complexity: LOW

The vulnerability is triggered via the iperf_exchange_parameters() function and requires network access to the iperf service.

🛠️ Fix & Mitigation

✅ Official Fix

Patch Version: iperf v3.18

Vendor Advisory: https://github.com/esnet/iperf/releases/tag/3.18

Restart Required: Yes

Instructions:

1. Download iperf v3.18 from https://github.com/esnet/iperf/releases/tag/3.18
2. Compile and install according to your OS instructions
3. Restart any running iperf services

🔧 Temporary Workarounds

Downgrade to previous version

linux

Install iperf v3.16 or earlier which are not affected by this vulnerability

apt-get install iperf3=3.16-1
yum install iperf3-3.16

Network isolation

linux

Restrict network access to iperf services using firewall rules

iptables -A INPUT -p tcp --dport 5201 -s trusted_network -j ACCEPT
iptables -A INPUT -p tcp --dport 5201 -j DROP

🧯 If You Can't Patch

Implement strict network access controls to limit iperf service exposure
Monitor iperf processes and implement automatic restart mechanisms for crashes

🔍 How to Verify

Check if Vulnerable:

Run 'iperf3 --version' and check if output contains '3.17.1'

Check Version:

iperf3 --version

Verify Fix Applied:

Run 'iperf3 --version' and verify version is 3.18 or higher

📡 Detection & Monitoring

Log Indicators:

Segmentation fault errors in system logs
iperf process crashes
Core dumps from iperf

Network Indicators:

Unexpected TCP connections to iperf port (default 5201)
Abnormal termination of iperf sessions

SIEM Query:

process_name="iperf3" AND (event_type="crash" OR error_message="segmentation fault")

📊 Metadata

CVE ID: CVE-2024-53580

CVSS v3 Score: 7.5 (HIGH)

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

CWE: CWE-476

Published: December 18, 2024

Last Updated: November 3, 2025

🔗 References

https://gist.github.com/neolead/663badf2ebefefa6fe4303695e7aa7a3 Exploit,Third Party Advisory
https://github.com/esnet/iperf/releases/tag/3.18 Release Notes
https://lists.debian.org/debian-lts-announce/2025/01/msg00027.html
https://security.netapp.com/advisory/ntap-20250404-0009/ Third Party Advisory
https://gist.github.com/neolead/663badf2ebefefa6fe4303695e7aa7a3 Exploit,Third Party Advisory

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