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CVE-2017-6499 Debian CVE debrief

CVE-2017-6499 is a denial-of-service issue in Magick++ for ImageMagick 6.9.7. According to NVD, a specially crafted file can create a nested exception that leads to a memory leak, which can exhaust resources and disrupt service availability. NVD rates the issue as CVSS 3.0 5.5 (Medium) with availability impact high. Debian references the issue in DSA-3808, and the ImageMagick project published a patch commit and vendor advisory.

Vendor
Debian
Product
Unknown
CVSS
MEDIUM 5.5
CISA KEV
Not listed in stored evidence
Original CVE published
2017-03-06
Original CVE updated
2026-05-13
Advisory published
2017-03-06
Advisory updated
2026-05-13

Who should care

Teams operating ImageMagick or Magick++ in file-processing pipelines should prioritize this, especially Debian 8.0/9.0 environments and any deployment explicitly using ImageMagick 6.9.7. Service owners should care most where untrusted files are accepted or automated image processing is exposed to users.

Technical summary

NVD lists the vulnerable component as ImageMagick 6.9.7 and identifies CWE-772. The CVSS vector is AV:L/AC:L/PR:N/UI:R/S:U/C:N/I:N/A:H, indicating the issue requires user interaction and primarily affects availability. The reported behavior is a nested exception path that can leak memory when processing a specially crafted file, potentially causing denial of service.

Defensive priority

Medium

Recommended defensive actions

  • Apply the vendor patch or update to a fixed ImageMagick/Magick++ release referenced by the ImageMagick commit and advisory.
  • If you use Debian 8.0 or 9.0 packages, review and apply Debian security guidance in DSA-3808.
  • Inventory systems using ImageMagick 6.9.7 or Magick++ and prioritize internet-facing or automated upload-processing services.
  • Test file-processing workflows for abnormal memory growth and restart behavior after malformed inputs.
  • Use least-privilege service accounts and resource controls to reduce blast radius from resource-exhaustion failures.

Evidence notes

Primary evidence comes from NVD and linked advisories. NVD describes the issue as a specially crafted file causing a nested exception and memory leak, with CVSS 3.0 vector AV:L/AC:L/PR:N/UI:R/S:U/C:N/I:N/A:H and CWE-772. Related references include Debian DSA-3808, a Debian issue tracker entry, and an ImageMagick patch commit and vendor advisory. The CVE publishedAt date used here is 2017-03-06T02:59:00.587Z.

Sources and references

Verified primary and authoritative sources

  • CVE-2017-6499 CVE Program record

    Publisher, destination, and source semantics verified

    URL: https://www.cve.org/CVERecord?id=CVE-2017-6499

    CVE Program - Official CVE Program record with source-provided CVE metadata.

  • CVE-2017-6499 NVD vulnerability detail

    Publisher, destination, and source semantics verified

    URL: https://nvd.nist.gov/vuln/detail/CVE-2017-6499

    NIST National Vulnerability Database - Official NIST NVD detail page and source-specific vulnerability assessment.

Supplemental 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.