CVE-2026-24857
Unknown Unknown - Not Provided
Heap Buffer Overflow in bulk_extractor Unrar Code Enables RCE

Publication date: 2026-01-28

Last updated on: 2026-02-09

Assigner: GitHub, Inc.

Description
`bulk_extractor` is a digital forensics exploitation tool. Starting in version 1.4, `bulk_extractor`’s embedded unrar code has a heap‑buffer‑overflow in the RAR PPM LZ decoding path. A crafted RAR inside a disk image causes an out‑of‑bounds write in `Unpack::CopyString`, leading to a crash under ASAN (and likely a crash or memory corruption in production builds). There's potential for using this for RCE. As of time of publication, no known patches are available.
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Meta Information
Published
2026-01-28
Last Modified
2026-02-09
Generated
2026-06-16
AI Q&A
2026-01-29
EPSS Evaluated
2026-06-15
NVD
CVE-2026-24857
EUVD
EUVD-2026-4855
Affected Vendors & Products
Showing 1 associated CPE
Vendor Product Version / Range
simsong bulk_extractor From 1.4 (inc)
Helpful Resources
Exploitability
CWE
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KEV
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CWE ID Description
CWE-787 The product writes data past the end, or before the beginning, of the intended buffer.
CWE-122 A heap overflow condition is a buffer overflow, where the buffer that can be overwritten is allocated in the heap portion of memory, generally meaning that the buffer was allocated using a routine such as malloc().
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Executive Summary

The vulnerability is a heap-buffer-overflow in the embedded unrar code of bulk_extractor starting from version 1.4. It occurs in the RAR PPM LZ decoding path, where a specially crafted RAR file inside a disk image causes an out-of-bounds write in the function Unpack::CopyString. This leads to a crash under ASAN and likely causes a crash or memory corruption in production builds. There is also potential for this vulnerability to be exploited for remote code execution (RCE).

Impact Analysis

This vulnerability can cause the bulk_extractor tool to crash or experience memory corruption when processing crafted RAR files, potentially leading to denial of service. More seriously, it may allow an attacker to execute arbitrary code remotely (RCE), which could compromise the system running bulk_extractor.

Mitigation Strategies

As of the time of publication, no known patches are available for this vulnerability. Immediate steps include avoiding processing untrusted RAR files with bulk_extractor, especially those embedded in disk images, to prevent triggering the heap-buffer-overflow. Monitoring for crashes or abnormal behavior when using bulk_extractor may help identify exploitation attempts.

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