CVE-2017-9208: Medium severity Qpdf Project Qpdf vulnerability

Published May 23, 2017
·
Updated

Last updated 25 August 2025

Other sources

libqpdf.a in QPDF 6.0.0 allows remote attackers to cause a denial of service (infinite recursion and stack consumption) via a crafted PDF document, related to releaseResolved functions, aka qpdf-infiniteloop1.

Launchpad

Affected Software

5 affected componentsFixes available
Qpdf Project Qpdf=6.0.0
Canonical Ubuntu Linux=14.04
Canonical Ubuntu Linux=16.04
Canonical Ubuntu Linux=17.10
debian/qpdf
10.1.0-111.3.0-1+deb12u112.2.0-112.3.2-1

Remediation

Recommended actions to resolve this vulnerability, in priority order.

  1. Upgrade

    Upgrade debian/qpdf to a version that resolves this vulnerability.

    Fixed in 10.1.0-1Fixed in 11.3.0-1+deb12u1Fixed in 12.2.0-1Fixed in 12.3.2-1
  2. Upgrade

    Upgrade QPDF to a version that resolves this vulnerability.

    Fixed in 6.0.0Patch qpdf-infiniteloop1
  3. Compensating control

    Mitigate remote DoS risk from crafted PDFs by restricting access/inputs to QPDF processing (e.g., only process trusted PDFs and/or block untrusted upload sources) until the affected version is patched.

Event History

May 23, 2017
CVE Published
via MITRE·03:56 AM
Data Sourced
via MITRE·03:56 AM
Description
Data Sourced
via NVD·04:29 AM
RemedyDescriptionSeverityWeaknessAffected Software
Jan 11, 2024
Data Sourced
via Launchpad·10:42 PM
Description
Feb 20, 2026
Data Sourced
via Ubuntu·12:22 AM
RemedyDescriptionSeverityAffected Software
Data Sourced
via Debian·12:23 AM
DescriptionAffected Software

Frequently Asked Questions

1

What is the severity of CVE-2017-9208?

CVE-2017-9208 is classified as a denial of service vulnerability due to infinite recursion and stack consumption.

2

How do I fix CVE-2017-9208?

To fix CVE-2017-9208, upgrade to a patched version of QPDF such as 8.0.2-3~14.04.1 or a later release.

3

Which versions of QPDF are affected by CVE-2017-9208?

Versions of QPDF prior to 8.0.2 and including 6.0.0 are affected by CVE-2017-9208.

4

What type of attack does CVE-2017-9208 facilitate?

CVE-2017-9208 facilitates a denial of service attack through the use of specially crafted PDF documents.

5

Is CVE-2017-9208 specific to any operating systems?

CVE-2017-9208 is primarily associated with Ubuntu and Debian builds of the QPDF software.

Contact

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