CVE intelligence and bounded remediation

CVE-2020-35702 — DCTStream::getChars in DCTStream.cc in Poppler 20.12.1 has a heap-based buffer overflow via a crafted PDF document

High CVSS 7.8

DCTStream::getChars in DCTStream.cc in Poppler 20.12.1 has a heap-based buffer overflow via a crafted PDF document. NOTE: later reports indicate that this only affects builds from Poppler git clones in late December 2020, not the 20.12.1 release. In this situation, it should NOT be considered a Poppler vulnerability. However, several third-party Open Source projects directly rely on Poppler git clones made at arbitrary times, and therefore the CVE remains useful to users of those projects

Severity
High
CVSS
7.8 (3.1)
Published
2020-12-25
CISA KEV
Not currently listed
Ecosystem
software/application
Weaknesses
CWE-787

Affected products

  • freedesktop / poppler / 20.12.1

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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