CVE-2025-31498

Name
CVE-2025-31498
Description
c-ares is an asynchronous resolver library. From 1.32.3 through 1.34.4, there is a use-after-free in read_answers() when process_answer() may re-enqueue a query either due to a DNS Cookie Failure or when the upstream server does not properly support EDNS, or possibly on TCP queries if the remote closed the connection immediately after a response. If there was an issue trying to put that new transaction on the wire, it would close the connection handle, but read_answers() was still expecting the connection handle to be available to possibly dequeue other responses. In theory a remote attacker might be able to trigger this by flooding the target with ICMP UNREACHABLE packets if they also control the upstream nameserver and can return a result with one of those conditions, this has been untested. Otherwise only a local attacker might be able to change system behavior to make send()/write() return a failure condition. This vulnerability is fixed in 1.34.5.
NVD Severity
high
Other trackers
Mailing lists
Exploits
Forges
GitHub (code, issues), Aports (code, issues)

References

Type URI
MISC https://github.com/c-ares/c-ares/commit/29d38719112639d8c0ba910254a3dd4f482ea2d1
MISC https://github.com/c-ares/c-ares/pull/821
CONFIRM https://github.com/c-ares/c-ares/security/advisories/GHSA-6hxc-62jh-p29v
af854a3a-2127-422b-91ae-364da2661108 http://www.openwall.com/lists/oss-security/2025/04/08/3

Match rules

CPE URI Source package Min version Max version
c-ares >= 1.32.3 < 1.34.5

Vulnerable and fixed packages

Source package Branch Version Maintainer Status
c-ares edge-main 1.34.3-r0 Carlo Landmeter <clandmeter@alpinelinux.org> possibly vulnerable
c-ares edge-main 1.34.4-r0 Carlo Landmeter <clandmeter@alpinelinux.org> possibly vulnerable
c-ares edge-main 1.34.5-r0 Carlo Landmeter <clandmeter@alpinelinux.org> fixed
c-ares 3.21-main 1.34.5-r0 Carlo Landmeter <clandmeter@alpinelinux.org> fixed