CVE-2025-12818
📋 TL;DR
An integer wraparound vulnerability in PostgreSQL's libpq client library allows attackers to cause undersized memory allocations leading to out-of-bounds writes and segmentation faults. This affects applications using libpq to connect to PostgreSQL databases. All PostgreSQL versions before 18.1, 17.7, 16.11, 15.15, 14.20, and 13.23 are vulnerable.
💻 Affected Systems
- PostgreSQL
- Applications using PostgreSQL libpq client library
⚠️ 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 or denial of service through application crash, potentially compromising client systems or disrupting database connectivity.
Likely Case
Denial of service through segmentation fault causing application crashes and service disruption.
If Mitigated
Limited impact with proper input validation and network segmentation preventing malicious input from reaching vulnerable systems.
🎯 Exploit Status
Exploitation requires sending specially crafted input to libpq functions, which could come from application input or network peers.
🛠️ Fix & Mitigation
✅ Official Fix
Patch Version: PostgreSQL 18.1, 17.7, 16.11, 15.15, 14.20, or 13.23
Vendor Advisory: https://www.postgresql.org/support/security/CVE-2025-12818/
Restart Required: Yes
Instructions:
1. Identify PostgreSQL version
2. Download appropriate patched version from PostgreSQL website
3. Stop PostgreSQL service
4. Install patched version
5. Restart PostgreSQL service
6. Verify version update
🔧 Temporary Workarounds
Network Segmentation
linuxRestrict network access to PostgreSQL servers and clients to trusted sources only
iptables -A INPUT -p tcp --dport 5432 -s trusted_ip -j ACCEPT
iptables -A INPUT -p tcp --dport 5432 -j DROP
Input Validation
allImplement strict input validation in applications using libpq to prevent malicious input
🧯 If You Can't Patch
- Implement strict network access controls to limit exposure
- Monitor for segmentation fault events in application logs
🔍 How to Verify
Check if Vulnerable:
Check PostgreSQL version with 'psql --version' or 'SELECT version();' in psqlCheck Version:
psql --versionVerify Fix Applied:
Verify version is 18.1, 17.7, 16.11, 15.15, 14.20, 13.23 or higher📡 Detection & Monitoring
Log Indicators:
- Segmentation fault errors in application logs
- PostgreSQL connection failures
- Unexpected application crashes
Network Indicators:
- Unusual network traffic patterns to PostgreSQL ports
- Connection attempts with malformed packets
SIEM Query:
source="application.log" AND "segmentation fault" OR "PostgreSQL crash"