When a canister method is called via ic_cdk::call* , a new Future CallFuture is created and can be awaited by the caller to get the execution result. Internally, the state of the Future is tracked and stored in a struct called CallFutureState. A bug in the polling implementation of the CallFuture allows multiple references to be held for this internal state and not all references were dropped before the Future is resolved. Since we have unaccounted references held, a copy of the internal state ended up being persisted in the canister's heap and thus causing a memory leak. Impact Canisters built in Rust with ic_cdk and ic_cdk_timers are affected. If these canisters call a canister method, use timers or heartbeat, they will likely leak a small amount of memory on every such operation. In the worst case, this could lead to heap memory exhaustion triggered by an attacker. Motoko based canisters are not affected by the bug. PatchesThe patch has been backported to all minor versions between >= 0.8.0, <= 0.15.0. The patched versions available are 0.8.2, 0.9.3, 0.10.1, 0.11.6, 0.12.2, 0.13.5, 0.14.1, 0.15.1 and their previous versions have been yanked. WorkaroundsThere are no known workarounds at the moment. Developers are recommended to upgrade their canister as soon as possible to the latest available patched version of ic_cdk to avoid running out of Wasm heap memory. Upgrading the canisters (without updating `ic_cdk`) also frees the leaked memory but it's only a temporary solution.
This vulnerability carries a HIGH severity rating with a CVSS v3.1 score of 7.5, indicating it can be exploited remotely over the network with relatively low complexity without requiring user interaction and does not require pre-existing privileges . The vulnerability impacts and availability (service disruption) for affected systems. Impacting 1 product from dfinity organizations running these solutions should prioritize assessment and patching.
Reported in 2024, this vulnerability emerged during an era marked by increased sophistication in supply chain attacks, cloud infrastructure vulnerabilities, and software-as-a-service (SaaS) security challenges. Security practices during this period emphasized zero-trust architectures, container security, and API protection.
2024-09-05T13:15:11.390
2024-09-12T20:47:13.387
Analyzed
6b35d637-e00f-4228-858c-b20ad6e1d07b
CVSSv3.1: 7.5 (HIGH)
| Type | Vendor | Product | Version/Range | Vulnerable? |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Application | dfinity | canister_developer_kit_for_the_internet_computer | < 0.8.2 | Yes |
| Application | dfinity | canister_developer_kit_for_the_internet_computer | < 0.9.3 | Yes |
| Application | dfinity | canister_developer_kit_for_the_internet_computer | < 0.11.6 | Yes |
| Application | dfinity | canister_developer_kit_for_the_internet_computer | < 0.12.2 | Yes |
| Application | dfinity | canister_developer_kit_for_the_internet_computer | < 0.13.5 | Yes |
| Application | dfinity | canister_developer_kit_for_the_internet_computer | 0.10.0 | Yes |
| Application | dfinity | canister_developer_kit_for_the_internet_computer | 0.14.0 | Yes |
| Application | dfinity | canister_developer_kit_for_the_internet_computer | 0.15.0 | Yes |
SecUtils normalizes and enriches National Vulnerability Database (NVD) records by standardizing vendor and product identifiers, aggregating vulnerability metadata from both NVD and MITRE sources, and providing structured context for security teams. For dfinity's affected products, we extract Common Platform Enumeration (CPE) data, Common Weakness Enumeration (CWE) classifications, CVSS severity metrics, and reference data to enable rapid vulnerability prioritization and asset correlation. This record contains no exploit code, proof-of-concept instructions, or attack methodologies—only defensive intelligence necessary for patch management, risk assessment, and security operations.