CVE-2011-3048 Memory corruption in n/a
Remote attackers can execute arbitrary code or cause denial of service via crafted PNG text chunks in libpng, requiring user interaction to open the file.
- Exploited in the wild
- Not known
- Login needed
- Not needed
- Attackable
- Over the internet
- Victim action needed
- A user has to click or open something
- Fix
- Available
What is CVE-2011-3048?
CVE-2011-3048 is a medium-severity memory corruption vulnerability in Libpng Libpng, published on 29 May 2012. An attacker can exploit it over the internet without logging in, and only if a user opens a file or follows a link.
Official description
The png_set_text_2 function in pngset.c in libpng 1.0.x before 1.0.59, 1.2.x before 1.2.49, 1.4.x before 1.4.11, and 1.5.x before 1.5.10 allows remote attackers to cause a denial of service (crash) or execute arbitrary code via a crafted text chunk in a PNG image file, which triggers a memory allocation failure that is not properly handled, leading to a heap-based buffer overflow.
Weakness: CWE-119
Which versions are affected by CVE-2011-3048?
It affects 1 product.
Linux distribution packages (24)
libpng Red Hat:enterprise_linux:5::client | All versions | 2:1.2.10-17.el5_8 |
libpng-debuginfo Red Hat:enterprise_linux:5::client | All versions | 2:1.2.10-17.el5_8 |
libpng Red Hat:enterprise_linux:5::client_workstation | All versions | 2:1.2.10-17.el5_8 |
libpng-debuginfo Red Hat:enterprise_linux:5::client_workstation | All versions | 2:1.2.10-17.el5_8 |
libpng-devel Red Hat:enterprise_linux:5::client_workstation | All versions | 2:1.2.10-17.el5_8 |
libpng Red Hat:enterprise_linux:5::server | All versions | 2:1.2.10-17.el5_8 |
libpng-debuginfo Red Hat:enterprise_linux:5::server | All versions | 2:1.2.10-17.el5_8 |
libpng-devel Red Hat:enterprise_linux:5::server | All versions | 2:1.2.10-17.el5_8 |
libpng Red Hat:enterprise_linux:6::client | All versions | 2:1.2.49-1.el6_2 |
libpng-debuginfo Red Hat:enterprise_linux:6::client | All versions | 2:1.2.49-1.el6_2 |
libpng-devel Red Hat:enterprise_linux:6::client | All versions | 2:1.2.49-1.el6_2 |
libpng-static Red Hat:enterprise_linux:6::client | All versions | 2:1.2.49-1.el6_2 |
libpng Red Hat:enterprise_linux:6::computenode | All versions | 2:1.2.49-1.el6_2 |
libpng-debuginfo Red Hat:enterprise_linux:6::computenode | All versions | 2:1.2.49-1.el6_2 |
libpng-devel Red Hat:enterprise_linux:6::computenode | All versions | 2:1.2.49-1.el6_2 |
libpng-static Red Hat:enterprise_linux:6::computenode | All versions | 2:1.2.49-1.el6_2 |
libpng Red Hat:enterprise_linux:6::server | All versions | 2:1.2.49-1.el6_2 |
libpng-debuginfo Red Hat:enterprise_linux:6::server | All versions | 2:1.2.49-1.el6_2 |
libpng-devel Red Hat:enterprise_linux:6::server | All versions | 2:1.2.49-1.el6_2 |
libpng-static Red Hat:enterprise_linux:6::server | All versions | 2:1.2.49-1.el6_2 |
libpng Red Hat:enterprise_linux:6::workstation | All versions | 2:1.2.49-1.el6_2 |
libpng-debuginfo Red Hat:enterprise_linux:6::workstation | All versions | 2:1.2.49-1.el6_2 |
libpng-devel Red Hat:enterprise_linux:6::workstation | All versions | 2:1.2.49-1.el6_2 |
libpng-static Red Hat:enterprise_linux:6::workstation | All versions | 2:1.2.49-1.el6_2 |
Products include Libpng Libpng.
How do I fix CVE-2011-3048?
Upgrade to a fixed version.
Upgrade to the fixed version. Memory-safe languages, compiler hardening and fuzzing prevent most new cases. More about Memory corruption.
Is CVE-2011-3048 being exploited?
There is no known exploitation of CVE-2011-3048 in the wild and no public exploit code.
Other vulnerabilities in Libpng Libpng
- CVE-2017-12652 Denial of service in n/a
- CVE-2018-14550 Out-of-bounds write in libpng
- CVE-2026-25646 LIBPNG has a heap buffer overflow in png_set_quantize
- CVE-2026-33636 LIBPNG has ARM NEON Palette Expansion Out-of-Bounds Read on AArch64
- CVE-2026-33416 LIBPNG has use-after-free via pointer aliasing in `png_set_tRNS` and `png_set_PLTE`
Sources
Also known as DSA-2446-1, GHSA-mmpj-hr4h-5g99, RHSA-2012:0523.