ericblackgachara/openvino-integer-overflow-poc

OpenVINO: Integer Overflow in IR Loader → OOB Memory Access (CWE-789 / CWE-190)

Status: CONFIRMED — READY TO SUBMIT

Severity: High (P2) — OOB Read/Write via crafted .xml model file

Target

• Repo: openvinotoolkit/openvino
• Platform: huntr.com
• Format: OpenVINO IR v11 (.xml + .bin)

Note on XXE

XXE is NOT possible. OpenVINO uses pugixml which architecturally cannot resolve external entities. Do not report XXE. This is the only finding.

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Root Cause

set_constant_num_buffer() calls the unsafe ov::shape_size() overload (std::accumulate + std::multiplies, no overflow check) on attacker-controlled shape values. The safe shape_size_safe() (with mul_overflow per step) exists in the same codebase but is only used by allocate_buffer().

Vulnerable file: src/core/xml_util/src/xml_deserialize_util.cpp

// UNSAFE — no overflow check:
if (size < ((ov::shape_size(shape) * el_type.bitwidth() + 7) >> 3))
    throw ...;
// If shape_size() overflows to 0, check becomes: if (size < 0) → false → BYPASSED

Safe path (unused here):

// shape_util.cpp — shape_size_safe():
if (mul_overflow(size, *first, size)) return std::nullopt;

Attack

Shape [4611686018427387904, 4] (2^62 × 4):

• ov::shape_size() overflows signed int64 → UB, typically wraps to 0
• Check: 4 < (0 * 32 + 7) >> 3 → 4 < 0 → false → check bypassed
• Constant node created: shape claims 2^64 elements, buffer is 4 bytes
• Any downstream use (inference, shape propagation) → OOB read/write

Vulnerable Files

File	Location	Issue
src/core/xml_util/src/xml_deserialize_util.cpp	set_constant_num_buffer()	Calls unsafe ov::shape_size() on attacker shape
src/core/include/openvino/core/shape.hpp	shape_size()	std::accumulate + std::multiplies, no overflow check
src/core/src/shape_util.cpp	shape_size_safe()	Safe version — NOT called here

PoC Files

• poc_openvino_int_overflow.py — builds crafted IR and triggers bypass + OOB
• poc_overflow_patterns.py — tests multiple overflow shapes systematically

Reproduction

pip install openvino
python poc_openvino_int_overflow.py

Fix

Replace in set_constant_num_buffer():

// Replace:
ov::shape_size(shape)
// With:
ov::shape_size_safe(shape).value_or(throw ov::Exception("Shape overflow"))