CVE-2020-37167 ClamAV CVE debrief

Who should care

Defenders responsible for ClamAV deployments should assess exposure and prioritize updating to 0.103.0-rc or later. Security teams monitoring for potential malicious bytecode activity should also be aware of this vulnerability.

Why it matters

CVE-2020-37167 is a high-severity vulnerability in ClamAV's bytecode interpreter that allows attackers to manipulate function names, potentially leading to malicious bytecode execution or unexpected behavior. Defenders should prioritize verifying ClamAV versions, assessing exposure, and monitoring for malicious activity.

• Verify ClamAV versions and update to 0.103.0-rc or later to prevent potential malicious bytecode execution
• Assess exposure in environments using ClamAV to determine if updates are necessary
• Monitor for potential malicious bytecode activity to detect possible exploitation

Technical summary

The ClamAV bytecode interpreter has a vulnerability in function name processing, allowing attackers to manipulate bytecode function names. This could potentially lead to malicious bytecode execution or unexpected behavior in the ClamAV engine. The vulnerability exists in ClamAV versions prior to 0.103.0-rc. Defenders should prioritize verifying ClamAV versions and updating to 0.103.0-rc or later, assessing exposure in their environments, and monitoring for potential malicious bytecode activity. The CVE record and NVD entry provide details on the vulnerability.

Defensive priority

Defenders should prioritize verifying ClamAV versions and updating to 0.103.0-rc or later, assessing exposure in their environments, and monitoring for potential malicious bytecode activity.

Recommended defensive actions

• Verify ClamAV versions in use and update to 0.103.0-rc or later
• Assess exposure in environments using ClamAV
• Monitor for potential malicious bytecode activity
• Review compensating controls for exposed systems while remediation is scheduled and verified
• Check relevant monitoring, detection, and logs for exposed assets that need extra review
• Track exceptions, retest remediated assets, and close the item only after evidence is documented
• Confirm whether affected product deployments exist in managed environments and assign an owner for follow-up

Evidence notes

The CVE record and NVD entry provide details on the vulnerability in ClamAV versions prior to 0.103.0-rc, allowing attackers to manipulate bytecode function names. However, the corpus does not establish versions, exploitation, impact, or remediation beyond updating to 0.103.0-rc.

Sources and references

Methodology and review provenance

AI-assisted synthesis based on stored public vulnerability evidence. System validation, approval state, and publication status do not by themselves establish human review of this revision. PatchSiren helps prioritize defensive review and does not prove exposure or remediation on any system.