# CVE-2017-8394: Null dereference in n/a

> A NULL pointer dereference in the BFD library allows attackers to cause a denial of service via crafted binary files processed by tools like objcopy.

- **Severity:** High 7.5 (`CVSS:3.0/AV:N/AC:L/PR:N/UI:N/S:U/C:N/I:N/A:H`)
- **Exploited in the wild:** Not known
- **Login needed:** Not needed
- **Attackable:** Over the internet
- **Victim action needed:** Not needed
- **Fix available:** Yes
- **Published:** 1 May 2017
- **Updated:** 5 Aug 2024
- **Also known as:** DEBIAN-CVE-2017-8394, GHSA-mvv8-9c49-m8g7, UBUNTU-CVE-2017-8394

## What is CVE-2017-8394?

CVE-2017-8394 is a high-severity vulnerability in Gnu Binutils, published on 1 May 2017. An attacker can exploit it over the internet without logging in, with no action from the victim.

### Official description

The Binary File Descriptor (BFD) library (aka libbfd), as distributed in GNU Binutils 2.28, is vulnerable to an invalid read of size 4 due to NULL pointer dereferencing of _bfd_elf_large_com_section. This vulnerability causes programs that conduct an analysis of binary programs using the libbfd library, such as objcopy, to crash.

Weakness: CWE-476 (NULL Pointer Dereference)

## Which versions are affected by CVE-2017-8394?

It affects 1 product.


Products: Gnu Binutils.

## How do I fix CVE-2017-8394?

Upgrade to a fixed version.

## Is CVE-2017-8394 being exploited?

There is no known exploitation of CVE-2017-8394 in the wild and no public exploit code.

## Other vulnerabilities in Gnu Binutils

- [CVE-2017-7614](https://insights.sbomify.com/CVE-2017-7614/): Null dereference in n/a (critical 9.8)
- [CVE-2014-9939](https://insights.sbomify.com/CVE-2014-9939/): Memory corruption in n/a (critical 9.8)
- [CVE-2017-7226](https://insights.sbomify.com/CVE-2017-7226/): Information disclosure in n/a (critical 9.1)
- [CVE-2017-6969](https://insights.sbomify.com/CVE-2017-6969/): Information disclosure in n/a (critical 9.1)
- [CVE-2020-19726](https://insights.sbomify.com/CVE-2020-19726/): Denial of service in n/a (high 8.8)

## Fix prompt for AI coding agents

```text
Check this codebase for CVE-2017-8394 and fix it if it is affected.

What it is: CVE-2017-8394 is a high-severity vulnerability in Gnu Binutils, published on 1 May 2017. An attacker can exploit it over the internet without logging in, with no action from the victim.
Exploitation: There is no known exploitation of CVE-2017-8394 in the wild and no public exploit code.

Affected product: Gnu Binutils. No package-level version data is available, so check the vendor advisory linked from the reference page.

Task:
1. Search the dependency manifests and lockfiles (for example package.json, package-lock.json, requirements.txt, poetry.lock, uv.lock, pom.xml, build.gradle, go.mod, Cargo.lock, Gemfile.lock) and any Dockerfiles for the affected packages, including transitive dependencies.
2. If an affected version is in use, upgrade it to the fixed version for its release line with the project's package manager, so the lockfile is regenerated. Prefer the smallest upgrade that fixes it.
3. If there is no fix, or the upgrade would break the build, do not guess: explain the risk and the safest workaround instead.
4. Run the tests and summarise what changed and why.
5. If nothing in the project is affected, say so and change nothing.

Reference: https://insights.sbomify.com/CVE-2017-8394/ (Markdown: https://insights.sbomify.com/CVE-2017-8394/index.md)
```

## Sources

- CVE record: https://www.cve.org/CVERecord?id=CVE-2017-8394
- NVD: https://nvd.nist.gov/vuln/detail/CVE-2017-8394
- OSV: https://osv.dev/vulnerability/CVE-2017-8394

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From sbomify Insights: https://insights.sbomify.com/CVE-2017-8394/
Summaries are generated and may contain mistakes; the official description above is the record.