Security readout for executives and security teams
Plain-English summary
CVE-2017-11189 is a denial-of-service issue in unrar-free 0.0.1. A malformed RAR file may crash software that uses unrarlib, especially if it runs as a long-lived service processing user-supplied archives.
Executive priority
Prioritize if archive processing is internet-facing or business-critical. Otherwise handle through normal dependency cleanup, because the documented impact is application crash, not data theft or code execution.
Technical view
The CVE describes a NULL pointer dereference in unrarlib.c in unrar-free 0.0.1, causing application crash. The record notes overlap may exist with a test case separately reported as CVE-2017-14121. No CVSS, CWE, vendor fix, or precise affected CPE data is provided.
Likely exposure
Exposure is most likely where unrar-free 0.0.1 or embedded unrarlib code processes untrusted RAR archives in web uploads, mail gateways, scanners, or backend automation.
Exploitation context
The CVE is not listed as KEV, and the provided sources do not show active exploitation. A public GitHub reference contains PoC/test material, so defenders should treat crash validation artifacts as public.
Researcher notes
Evidence is sparse: the CVE record gives a vulnerable file, version, and crash class, but no scoring, CWE, CPE, or vendor advisory. Do not assume broader product impact without code or package confirmation.
Mitigation direction
- Inventory systems using unrar-free 0.0.1 or embedded unrarlib.c code.
- Avoid processing untrusted RAR archives with vulnerable library code.
- Check maintainer or distribution guidance for fixed packages or replacements.
- Isolate archive parsing from long-running production services where possible.
- Add process supervision so crashes do not cause prolonged outage.
Validation and detection
- Search dependency manifests and packaged binaries for unrar-free 0.0.1.
- Identify services that accept RAR files from external or low-trust users.
- Review crash logs for archive-processing NULL pointer dereference failures.
- Confirm whether unrarlib is linked into persistent services or batch-only tooling.
- Track remediation evidence in vulnerability management records.
Public sources used
Generated from the cited source records. This long-tail analysis has not been individually reviewed by a named human.
Conservative CVE-to-ATT&CK context
These mappings and lookup hints may be relevant to the vulnerability behavior, CWE, affected product, or exposure path. Glexia-inferred context is not an official MITRE, ATT&CK, CWE, or CVE Program mapping.
ATT&CK lookup starting points
Use these exact CWE pages and searches to review the Glexia ATT&CK library from this CVE's weakness and description context.
CVE-2017-11189 mapping review
Open the CVE-to-ATT&CK bridge for reviewed, inferred, or future official mappings tied to this CVE.
Open ATT&CK lookup- Severity
- Unknown
- CVSS
- Not scored
- Known Exploited
- No
- Published
CNA and ADP enrichment extracted from CVE v5
These fields come from the CVE record and ADP containers, not from Glexia's Take. They preserve time-varying source decisions such as CISA SSVC, KEV status, CVSS metrics, and provider references.
CVSS and timeline data
No CVSS vectors or timeline events were available in the normalized CVE source material.
Source materials
- CVE List V5 sourceCVE List V5
- https://github.com/0x09AL/my-exploits/tree/master/pocs/unrar-free/dosCVE reference · x_refsource_MISC
Products and packages named in the record
CWE details
CWE links open Glexia weakness intelligence pages with official CWE context, developer remediation guidance, and related CVE mappings.