CVE-2022-1920

What it actually does

Integer overflow in gst_matroska_demux_add_wvpk_header function in the matroskademux element causes heap buffer overwrite when parsing Matroska files, enabling arbitrary code execution.

Why it matters to the business

Applications that use GStreamer to process Matroska media files face risk of full system compromise from attacker-controlled files; the issue has been public for over four years with available exploits, increasing exposure for any media-handling pipelines.

How an attack unfolds

An attacker crafts a malicious Matroska file that triggers the integer overflow in the matroskademux element. When a vulnerable GStreamer application parses the file, the resulting heap overwrite is leveraged to achieve arbitrary code execution.

How to fix it

Upgrade gstreamer/gstreamer to the commit ccf22e315cedf81e0075ab179ffb1b733da5206e or later.

How to confirm the fix worked

Confirm GStreamer build contains commit ccf22e315cedf81e0075ab179ffb1b733da5206e; test parsing of crafted Matroska files that previously triggered the overflow.

Typical attack path

1. Craft malicious Matroska file that triggers integer overflow in matroskademux
2. Deliver file to target application or pipeline
3. Application parses file and performs heap overwrite
4. Execute arbitrary code via corrupted heap structures

How to detect it

Review application logs and crash reports for unexpected behavior or segmentation faults during Matroska parsing; inspect process memory dumps for heap corruption patterns after file processing.

What your security team should do

• Apply the fixed commit immediately across all GStreamer deployments
• Disable or restrict the matroskademux element when processing untrusted files
• Sandbox media-processing pipelines to limit impact of code execution