CVE-2025-11964
📋 TL;DR
A buffer overflow vulnerability exists in libpcap on Windows when converting certain Windows error messages to UTF-8. This could allow an attacker to write data beyond allocated memory bounds, potentially causing crashes or arbitrary code execution. Only Windows systems using vulnerable libpcap versions are affected.
💻 Affected Systems
- libpcap
⚠️ Manual Verification Required
This CVE does not have specific version information in our database, so automatic vulnerability detection cannot determine if your system is affected.
Why? The CVE database entry doesn't specify which versions are vulnerable (no version ranges provided by the vendor/NVD).
🔒 Custom verification scripts are available for registered users. Sign up free to download automated test scripts.
- Review the CVE details at NVD
- Check vendor security advisories for your specific version
- Test if the vulnerability is exploitable in your environment
- Consider updating to the latest version as a precaution
⚠️ Risk & Real-World Impact
Worst Case
Remote code execution leading to complete system compromise if combined with other vulnerabilities or memory corruption techniques.
Likely Case
Application crash (denial of service) when processing malformed error messages.
If Mitigated
Minimal impact due to low CVSS score and specific trigger conditions.
🎯 Exploit Status
Exploitation requires triggering specific Windows error messages with rare 4-byte UTF-8 characters.
🛠️ Fix & Mitigation
✅ Official Fix
Patch Version: libpcap with commit 7fabf607f2319a36a0bd78444247180acb838e69 or later
Vendor Advisory: https://github.com/the-tcpdump-group/libpcap/commit/7fabf607f2319a36a0bd78444247180acb838e69
Restart Required: No
Instructions:
1. Update libpcap to version containing commit 7fabf607f2319a36a0bd78444247180acb838e69
2. Recompile applications using libpcap
3. No system restart required
🔧 Temporary Workarounds
Disable error message conversion
windowsPrevent libpcap from converting Windows error messages to UTF-8
Not applicable - requires code modification
🧯 If You Can't Patch
- Restrict applications using libpcap to trusted networks only
- Monitor for application crashes related to network packet processing
🔍 How to Verify
Check if Vulnerable:
Check libpcap version and verify if commit 7fabf607f2319a36a0bd78444247180acb838e69 is present in sourceCheck Version:
pcap-config --version or check libpcap source repositoryVerify Fix Applied:
Confirm libpcap includes the fix commit and test with error messages containing 4-byte UTF-8 characters📡 Detection & Monitoring
Log Indicators:
- Application crashes when processing network packets
- Memory access violation errors in libpcap
Network Indicators:
- Unusual error messages containing rare Unicode characters
SIEM Query:
EventID: 1000 Application Fault for libpcap or dependent applications