CVE-2024-20290

What it actually does

Heap buffer over-read in OLE2 file format parser due to incorrect end-of-string check, causing the scanning process to terminate.

Why it matters to the business

Disrupts file scanning operations across environments using the affected software, leading to service unavailability and wasted system resources until the process is restarted.

How an attack unfolds

An attacker crafts a malicious OLE2 file and submits it for scanning by the vulnerable parser; the malformed end-of-string handling triggers a heap over-read that crashes the scanner.

How to fix it

Upgrade gnutls/gnutls (GIT) to commit df405c5e64874529b7b9dc1177165f03971dc196 or later; restart affected scanning services after applying the update.

How to confirm the fix worked

Confirm the running version reports the fixed commit hash; test scanning of known-good and crafted OLE2 samples to verify the process no longer crashes.

Typical attack path

1. Identify a reachable scanning endpoint accepting OLE2 content
2. Generate a specially crafted OLE2 file exploiting the end-of-string check flaw
3. Submit the file to trigger the heap over-read
4. Observe termination of the scanning process and resulting denial of service

How to detect it

Review scanner process logs and system crash reports for abrupt terminations during OLE2 file handling; correlate with file submission timestamps and resource exhaustion events.

What your security team should do

• Apply the gnutls commit df405c5e64874529b7b9dc1177165f03971dc196 immediately on all instances
• Monitor scanning service health and resource usage for unexpected terminations
• Review and harden file submission paths to limit untrusted OLE2 content until patched