CVE intelligence and bounded remediation

CVE-2020-12884 — A buffer over-read was discovered in the CoAP library in Arm Mbed OS 5.15.3

Critical CVSS 9.1

A buffer over-read was discovered in the CoAP library in Arm Mbed OS 5.15.3. The CoAP parser is responsible for parsing received CoAP packets. The function sn_coap_parser_options_parse_multiple_options() parses CoAP options that may occur multiple consecutive times in a single packet. While processing the options, packet_data_pptr is accessed after being incremented by option_len without a prior out-of-bounds memory check. The temp_parsed_uri_query_ptr is validated for a correct range, but the range valid for temp_parsed_uri_query_ptr is derived from the amount of allocated heap memory, not the actual input size. Therefore the check of temp_parsed_uri_query_ptr may be insufficient for safe access to the area pointed to by packet_data_pptr. As a result, access to a memory area outside of the intended boundary of the packet buffer is made.

Severity
Critical
CVSS
9.1 (3.1)
Published
2020-06-18
CISA KEV
Not currently listed
Ecosystem
operating-system
Weaknesses
CWE-125

Affected products

  • arm / mbed_os / 5.15.3

Matched remediation archetype

Buffer bounds, memory safety, and memory corruption

This catalog composition supplies bounded fallback guidance. Explicitly reviewed curated workflows load with the complete record below.

Check exposure

  • Identify affected native-code versions, build flags, architectures, parsers, codecs, drivers, and input paths in all shipped artifacts.
  • Determine whether untrusted data reaches the affected routine and the process privilege, sandbox, and network exposure.
  • Confirm statically linked, vendored, firmware, and platform-provided copies, not only package-manager records.

Remediate safely

  • Apply the maintained upstream correction or replace the affected component, then rebuild every dependent artifact from clean inputs.
  • Adopt bounds-checked interfaces, validated sizes and integer conversions, clear ownership, and memory-safe components where practical.
  • Enable supported compiler and runtime hardening and add sanitized tests and fuzz regression seeds derived from non-weaponized fixtures.

Authoritative sources

Complete CVE record and remediation plan

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