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TI-2017-07159 Aliases CVE-2017-9778GHSA-hmmq-v5m7-8j9w

GNU Debugger (GDB) 8.0 and earlier fails to detect a negative length field in a DWARF…

Priority LOW 27CWE-20Published · Updated

Key facts

Attack vector
Local
Privileges required
None
User interaction
Required
Attack complexity
Low
Impact type
Denial of service
Confidentiality · integrity · availability
None · None · High
Fix status
Will not fix Red Hat: no fix planned

Attack profile from CVSS 3.0 · NVD. Fix status from CNA and Red Hat. Impact type from CWE-770.

Summary

GNU Debugger (GDB) 8.0 and earlier fails to detect a negative length field in a DWARF section. A malformed section in an ELF binary or a core file can cause GDB to repeatedly allocate memory until a process limit is reached. This can, for example, impede efforts to analyze malware with GDB.

Why it matters now

EPSS 0.01113 66th percentileScored 2026-11-07
Fix Will not fix Red Hat: no fix planned

SSVC decision points

Not available: CISA has not published SSVC decision points for this record.

Affected products

VendorProductAffected versionsFixed inStatusSource
——all versions—No fix listedCNA
  • — Vendor— Affected all versions Fixed in — No fix listed CNA

CPE configurations NVD · 1

CPEVersionsRoleVendor
cpe:2.3:a:gnu:gdb:*:*:*:*:*:*:*:*up to 8.0VulnerableGNU
  • cpe:2.3:a:gnu:gdb:*:*:*:*:*:*:*:* Versions up to 8.0 Vulnerable ·GNU

Remediation

No fixed version listed by the sources yet.

Vendor assessments

Red Hat

Red Hat rating: Low. Red Hat's page for this CVE →

ProductStatusPlan or fix
Red Hat Enterprise Linux 5AffectedNo fix planned: Will not fix
Red Hat Enterprise Linux 6AffectedNo fix planned: Will not fix
Red Hat Enterprise Linux 7AffectedNo fix planned: Will not fix

Timeline

  1. 2026-10-02 Threatist record created from CVE-2017-9778
  2. 2026-10-03 Alias added: GHSA-hmmq-v5m7-8j9w

References

Advisory 1

  • TI-2023-20307 GNU gdb (GDB) 13.0.50.20220805-git was discovered to contain a heap buffer overflow via… CVSS 3.1MEDIUM 5.5
  • TI-2023-20306 GNU gdb (GDB) 13.0.50.20220805-git was discovered to contain a heap use after free via… CVSS 3.1MEDIUM 5.5
  • TI-2023-20305 GNU gdb (GDB) 13.0.50.20220805-git was discovered to contain a stack overflow via the… CVSS 3.1MEDIUM 5.5
  • TI-2019-16008 Out-of-bounds read in GNU gdb CVSS 3.1HIGH 7.8
  • TI-2005-01613 gdb before 6.3 searches the current working directory to load the .gdbinit configuration… CVSS 2.0HIGH 7.2
  • TI-2011-03820 GNU Project Debugger (GDB) before 7.5, when .debug_gdb_scripts is defined, automatically… CVSS 2.0MEDIUM 6.9
See all 8 →

Sources

This product uses the NVD API but is not endorsed or certified by the NVD. Sources and licences