[3.8] gh-95778: CVE-2020-10735: Prevent DoS by very large int() (#96503)

* Correctly pre-check for int-to-str conversion

Converting a large enough `int` to a decimal string raises `ValueError` as expected. However, the raise comes _after_ the quadratic-time base-conversion algorithm has run to completion. For effective DOS prevention, we need some kind of check before entering the quadratic-time loop. Oops! =)

The quick fix: essentially we catch _most_ values that exceed the threshold up front. Those that slip through will still be on the small side (read: sufficiently fast), and will get caught by the existing check so that the limit remains exact.

The justification for the current check. The C code check is:
```c
max_str_digits / (3 * PyLong_SHIFT) <= (size_a - 11) / 10
```

In GitHub markdown math-speak, writing $M$ for `max_str_digits`, $L$ for `PyLong_SHIFT` and $s$ for `size_a`, that check is:
$$\left\lfloor\frac{M}{3L}\right\rfloor \le \left\lfloor\frac{s - 11}{10}\right\rfloor$$

From this it follows that
$$\frac{M}{3L} < \frac{s-1}{10}$$
hence that
$$\frac{L(s-1)}{M} > \frac{10}{3} > \log_2(10).$$
So
$$2^{L(s-1)} > 10^M.$$
But our input integer $a$ satisfies $|a| \ge 2^{L(s-1)}$, so $|a|$ is larger than $10^M$. This shows that we don't accidentally capture anything _below_ the intended limit in the check.

<!-- gh-issue-number: gh-95778 -->
* Issue: gh-95778
<!-- /gh-issue-number -->

Co-authored-by: Gregory P. Smith [Google LLC] <[email protected]>
Co-authored-by: Christian Heimes <[email protected]>
Co-authored-by: Mark Dickinson <[email protected]>

Author: 3 people

Doc/data/python3.8.abi

@@ -2381,7 +2381,7 @@
       </data-member>
     </class-decl>
     <pointer-type-def type-id='type-id-55' size-in-bits='64' id='type-id-56'/>
-    <class-decl name='_is' size-in-bits='21696' is-struct='yes' visibility='default' filepath='./Include/internal/pycore_pystate.h' line='67' column='1' id='type-id-66'>
+    <class-decl name='_is' size-in-bits='21760' is-struct='yes' visibility='default' filepath='./Include/internal/pycore_pystate.h' line='67' column='1' id='type-id-66'>
       <data-member access='public' layout-offset-in-bits='0'>
         <var-decl name='next' type-id='type-id-67' visibility='default' filepath='./Include/internal/pycore_pystate.h' line='69' column='1'/>
       </data-member>
@@ -2490,6 +2490,9 @@
       <data-member access='public' layout-offset-in-bits='21632'>
         <var-decl name='audit_hooks' type-id='type-id-60' visibility='default' filepath='./Include/internal/pycore_pystate.h' line='137' column='1'/>
       </data-member>
+      <data-member access='public' layout-offset-in-bits='21696'>
+        <var-decl name='int_max_str_digits' type-id='type-id-7' visibility='default' filepath='./Include/internal/pycore_pystate.h' line='139' column='1'/>
+      </data-member>
     </class-decl>
     <pointer-type-def type-id='type-id-66' size-in-bits='64' id='type-id-67'/>
     <typedef-decl name='__int64_t' type-id='type-id-36' filepath='/usr/include/x86_64-linux-gnu/bits/types.h' line='44' column='1' id='type-id-77'/>

Doc/library/functions.rst

@@ -838,6 +838,14 @@ are always available.  They are listed here in alphabetical order.
    .. versionchanged:: 3.8
       Falls back to :meth:`__index__` if :meth:`__int__` is not defined.
 
+   .. versionchanged:: 3.8.14
+      :class:`int` string inputs and string representations can be limited to
+      help avoid denial of service attacks. A :exc:`ValueError` is raised when
+      the limit is exceeded while converting a string *x* to an :class:`int` or
+      when converting an :class:`int` into a string would exceed the limit.
+      See the :ref:`integer string conversion length limitation
+      <int_max_str_digits>` documentation.
+
 
 .. function:: isinstance(object, classinfo)
 

Doc/library/json.rst

@@ -18,6 +18,11 @@ is a lightweight data interchange format inspired by
 `JavaScript <https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/JavaScript>`_ object literal syntax
 (although it is not a strict subset of JavaScript [#rfc-errata]_ ).
 
+.. warning::
+   Be cautious when parsing JSON data from untrusted sources. A malicious
+   JSON string may cause the decoder to consume considerable CPU and memory
+   resources. Limiting the size of data to be parsed is recommended.
+
 :mod:`json` exposes an API familiar to users of the standard library
 :mod:`marshal` and :mod:`pickle` modules.
 
@@ -255,6 +260,12 @@ Basic Usage
    be used to use another datatype or parser for JSON integers
    (e.g. :class:`float`).
 
+   .. versionchanged:: 3.8.14
+      The default *parse_int* of :func:`int` now limits the maximum length of
+      the integer string via the interpreter's :ref:`integer string
+      conversion length limitation <int_max_str_digits>` to help avoid denial
+      of service attacks.
+
    *parse_constant*, if specified, will be called with one of the following
    strings: ``'-Infinity'``, ``'Infinity'``, ``'NaN'``.
    This can be used to raise an exception if invalid JSON numbers

Doc/library/stdtypes.rst

@@ -4870,6 +4870,165 @@ types, where they are relevant.  Some of these are not reported by the
       [<class 'bool'>]
 
 
+.. _int_max_str_digits:
+
+Integer string conversion length limitation
+===========================================
+
+CPython has a global limit for converting between :class:`int` and :class:`str`
+to mitigate denial of service attacks. This limit *only* applies to decimal or
+other non-power-of-two number bases. Hexadecimal, octal, and binary conversions
+are unlimited. The limit can be configured.
+
+The :class:`int` type in CPython is an abitrary length number stored in binary
+form (commonly known as a "bignum"). There exists no algorithm that can convert
+a string to a binary integer or a binary integer to a string in linear time,
+*unless* the base is a power of 2. Even the best known algorithms for base 10
+have sub-quadratic complexity. Converting a large value such as ``int('1' *
+500_000)`` can take over a second on a fast CPU.
+
+Limiting conversion size offers a practical way to avoid `CVE-2020-10735
+<https://cve.mitre.org/cgi-bin/cvename.cgi?name=CVE-2020-10735>`_.
+
+The limit is applied to the number of digit characters in the input or output
+string when a non-linear conversion algorithm would be involved.  Underscores
+and the sign are not counted towards the limit.
+
+When an operation would exceed the limit, a :exc:`ValueError` is raised:
+
+.. doctest::
+
+   >>> import sys
+   >>> sys.set_int_max_str_digits(4300)  # Illustrative, this is the default.
+   >>> _ = int('2' * 5432)
+   Traceback (most recent call last):
+   ...
+   ValueError: Exceeds the limit (4300) for integer string conversion: value has 5432 digits.
+   >>> i = int('2' * 4300)
+   >>> len(str(i))
+   4300
+   >>> i_squared = i*i
+   >>> len(str(i_squared))
+   Traceback (most recent call last):
+   ...
+   ValueError: Exceeds the limit (4300) for integer string conversion: value has 8599 digits.
+   >>> len(hex(i_squared))
+   7144
+   >>> assert int(hex(i_squared), base=16) == i*i  # Hexadecimal is unlimited.
+
+The default limit is 4300 digits as provided in
+:data:`sys.int_info.default_max_str_digits <sys.int_info>`.
+The lowest limit that can be configured is 640 digits as provided in
+:data:`sys.int_info.str_digits_check_threshold <sys.int_info>`.
+
+Verification:
+
+.. doctest::
+
+   >>> import sys
+   >>> assert sys.int_info.default_max_str_digits == 4300, sys.int_info
+   >>> assert sys.int_info.str_digits_check_threshold == 640, sys.int_info
+   >>> msg = int('578966293710682886880994035146873798396722250538762761564'
+   ...           '9252925514383915483333812743580549779436104706260696366600'
+   ...           '571186405732').to_bytes(53, 'big')
+   ...
+
+.. versionadded:: 3.8.14
+
+Affected APIs
+-------------
+
+The limitation only applies to potentially slow conversions between :class:`int`
+and :class:`str` or :class:`bytes`:
+
+* ``int(string)`` with default base 10.
+* ``int(string, base)`` for all bases that are not a power of 2.
+* ``str(integer)``.
+* ``repr(integer)``
+* any other string conversion to base 10, for example ``f"{integer}"``,
+  ``"{}".format(integer)``, or ``b"%d" % integer``.
+
+The limitations do not apply to functions with a linear algorithm:
+
+* ``int(string, base)`` with base 2, 4, 8, 16, or 32.
+* :func:`int.from_bytes` and :func:`int.to_bytes`.
+* :func:`hex`, :func:`oct`, :func:`bin`.
+* :ref:`formatspec` for hex, octal, and binary numbers.
+* :class:`str` to :class:`float`.
+* :class:`str` to :class:`decimal.Decimal`.
+
+Configuring the limit
+---------------------
+
+Before Python starts up you can use an environment variable or an interpreter
+command line flag to configure the limit:
+
+* :envvar:`PYTHONINTMAXSTRDIGITS`, e.g.
+  ``PYTHONINTMAXSTRDIGITS=640 python3`` to set the limit to 640 or
+  ``PYTHONINTMAXSTRDIGITS=0 python3`` to disable the limitation.
+* :option:`-X int_max_str_digits <-X>`, e.g.
+  ``python3 -X int_max_str_digits=640``
+* :data:`sys.flags.int_max_str_digits` contains the value of
+  :envvar:`PYTHONINTMAXSTRDIGITS` or :option:`-X int_max_str_digits <-X>`.
+  If both the env var and the ``-X`` option are set, the ``-X`` option takes
+  precedence. A value of *-1* indicates that both were unset, thus a value of
+  :data:`sys.int_info.default_max_str_digits` was used during initilization.
+
+From code, you can inspect the current limit and set a new one using these
+:mod:`sys` APIs:
+
+* :func:`sys.get_int_max_str_digits` and :func:`sys.set_int_max_str_digits` are
+  a getter and setter for the interpreter-wide limit. Subinterpreters have
+  their own limit.
+
+Information about the default and minimum can be found in :attr:`sys.int_info`:
+
+* :data:`sys.int_info.default_max_str_digits <sys.int_info>` is the compiled-in
+  default limit.
+* :data:`sys.int_info.str_digits_check_threshold <sys.int_info>` is the lowest
+  accepted value for the limit (other than 0 which disables it).
+
+.. versionadded:: 3.8.14
+
+.. caution::
+
+   Setting a low limit *can* lead to problems. While rare, code exists that
+   contains integer constants in decimal in their source that exceed the
+   minimum threshold. A consequence of setting the limit is that Python source
+   code containing decimal integer literals longer than the limit will
+   encounter an error during parsing, usually at startup time or import time or
+   even at installation time - anytime an up to date ``.pyc`` does not already
+   exist for the code. A workaround for source that contains such large
+   constants is to convert them to ``0x`` hexadecimal form as it has no limit.
+
+   Test your application thoroughly if you use a low limit. Ensure your tests
+   run with the limit set early via the environment or flag so that it applies
+   during startup and even during any installation step that may invoke Python
+   to precompile ``.py`` sources to ``.pyc`` files.
+
+Recommended configuration
+-------------------------
+
+The default :data:`sys.int_info.default_max_str_digits` is expected to be
+reasonable for most applications. If your application requires a different
+limit, set it from your main entry point using Python version agnostic code as
+these APIs were added in security patch releases in versions before 3.11.
+
+Example::
+
+   >>> import sys
+   >>> if hasattr(sys, "set_int_max_str_digits"):
+   ...     upper_bound = 68000
+   ...     lower_bound = 4004
+   ...     current_limit = sys.get_int_max_str_digits()
+   ...     if current_limit == 0 or current_limit > upper_bound:
+   ...         sys.set_int_max_str_digits(upper_bound)
+   ...     elif current_limit < lower_bound:
+   ...         sys.set_int_max_str_digits(lower_bound)
+
+If you need to disable it entirely, set it to ``0``.
+
+
 .. rubric:: Footnotes
 
 .. [1] Additional information on these special methods may be found in the Python

Doc/library/sys.rst

@@ -445,9 +445,9 @@ always available.
    The :term:`named tuple` *flags* exposes the status of command line
    flags. The attributes are read only.
 
-   ============================= =============================
+   ============================= ==============================================================================================================
    attribute                     flag
-   ============================= =============================
+   ============================= ==============================================================================================================
    :const:`debug`                :option:`-d`
    :const:`inspect`              :option:`-i`
    :const:`interactive`          :option:`-i`
@@ -463,7 +463,8 @@ always available.
    :const:`hash_randomization`   :option:`-R`
    :const:`dev_mode`             :option:`-X` ``dev``
    :const:`utf8_mode`            :option:`-X` ``utf8``
-   ============================= =============================
+   :const:`int_max_str_digits`   :option:`-X int_max_str_digits <-X>` (:ref:`integer string conversion length limitation <int_max_str_digits>`)
+   ============================= ==============================================================================================================
 
    .. versionchanged:: 3.2
       Added ``quiet`` attribute for the new :option:`-q` flag.
@@ -481,6 +482,9 @@ always available.
       Added ``dev_mode`` attribute for the new :option:`-X` ``dev`` flag
       and ``utf8_mode`` attribute for the new  :option:`-X` ``utf8`` flag.
 
+   .. versionchanged:: 3.8.14
+      Added the ``int_max_str_digits`` attribute.
+
 
 .. data:: float_info
 
@@ -661,6 +665,15 @@ always available.
 
    .. versionadded:: 3.6
 
+
+.. function:: get_int_max_str_digits()
+
+   Returns the current value for the :ref:`integer string conversion length
+   limitation <int_max_str_digits>`. See also :func:`set_int_max_str_digits`.
+
+   .. versionadded:: 3.8.14
+
+
 .. function:: getrefcount(object)
 
    Return the reference count of the *object*.  The count returned is generally one
@@ -934,19 +947,31 @@ always available.
 
    .. tabularcolumns:: |l|L|
 
-   +-------------------------+----------------------------------------------+
-   | Attribute               | Explanation                                  |
-   +=========================+==============================================+
-   | :const:`bits_per_digit` | number of bits held in each digit.  Python   |
-   |                         | integers are stored internally in base       |
-   |                         | ``2**int_info.bits_per_digit``               |
-   +-------------------------+----------------------------------------------+
-   | :const:`sizeof_digit`   | size in bytes of the C type used to          |
-   |                         | represent a digit                            |
-   +-------------------------+----------------------------------------------+
+   +----------------------------------------+-----------------------------------------------+
+   | Attribute                              | Explanation                                   |
+   +========================================+===============================================+
+   | :const:`bits_per_digit`                | number of bits held in each digit.  Python    |
+   |                                        | integers are stored internally in base        |
+   |                                        | ``2**int_info.bits_per_digit``                |
+   +----------------------------------------+-----------------------------------------------+
+   | :const:`sizeof_digit`                  | size in bytes of the C type used to           |
+   |                                        | represent a digit                             |
+   +----------------------------------------+-----------------------------------------------+
+   | :const:`default_max_str_digits`        | default value for                             |
+   |                                        | :func:`sys.get_int_max_str_digits` when it    |
+   |                                        | is not otherwise explicitly configured.       |
+   +----------------------------------------+-----------------------------------------------+
+   | :const:`str_digits_check_threshold`    | minimum non-zero value for                    |
+   |                                        | :func:`sys.set_int_max_str_digits`,           |
+   |                                        | :envvar:`PYTHONINTMAXSTRDIGITS`, or           |
+   |                                        | :option:`-X int_max_str_digits <-X>`.         |
+   +----------------------------------------+-----------------------------------------------+
 
    .. versionadded:: 3.1
 
+   .. versionchanged:: 3.8.14
+      Added ``default_max_str_digits`` and ``str_digits_check_threshold``.
+
 
 .. data:: __interactivehook__
 
@@ -1220,6 +1245,14 @@ always available.
 
    .. availability:: Unix.
 
+.. function:: set_int_max_str_digits(n)
+
+   Set the :ref:`integer string conversion length limitation
+   <int_max_str_digits>` used by this interpreter. See also
+   :func:`get_int_max_str_digits`.
+
+   .. versionadded:: 3.8.14
+
 .. function:: setprofile(profilefunc)
 
    .. index::

Doc/library/test.rst

@@ -1283,6 +1283,16 @@ The :mod:`test.support` module defines the following functions:
    .. versionadded:: 3.6
 
 
+.. function:: adjust_int_max_str_digits(max_digits)
+
+   This function returns a context manager that will change the global
+   :func:`sys.set_int_max_str_digits` setting for the duration of the
+   context to allow execution of test code that needs a different limit
+   on the number of digits when converting between an integer and string.
+
+   .. versionadded:: 3.8.14
+
+
 The :mod:`test.support` module defines the following classes:
 
 .. class:: TransientResource(exc, **kwargs)

Doc/using/cmdline.rst

@@ -437,6 +437,9 @@ Miscellaneous options
    * ``-X showalloccount`` to output the total count of allocated objects for
      each type when the program finishes. This only works when Python was built with
      ``COUNT_ALLOCS`` defined.
+   * ``-X int_max_str_digits`` configures the :ref:`integer string conversion
+     length limitation <int_max_str_digits>`.  See also
+     :envvar:`PYTHONINTMAXSTRDIGITS`.
    * ``-X importtime`` to show how long each import takes. It shows module
      name, cumulative time (including nested imports) and self time (excluding
      nested imports).  Note that its output may be broken in multi-threaded
@@ -487,6 +490,9 @@ Miscellaneous options
       The ``-X pycache_prefix`` option. The ``-X dev`` option now logs
       ``close()`` exceptions in :class:`io.IOBase` destructor.
 
+   .. versionadded:: 3.8.14
+      The ``-X int_max_str_digits`` option.
+
 
 Options you shouldn't use
 ~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~
@@ -646,6 +652,13 @@ conflict.
 
    .. versionadded:: 3.2.3
 
+.. envvar:: PYTHONINTMAXSTRDIGITS
+
+   If this variable is set to an integer, it is used to configure the
+   interpreter's global :ref:`integer string conversion length limitation
+   <int_max_str_digits>`.
+
+   .. versionadded:: 3.8.14
 
 .. envvar:: PYTHONIOENCODING
 

Doc/whatsnew/3.8.rst

@@ -2325,3 +2325,17 @@ any leading zeros.
 
 (Originally contributed by Christian Heimes in :issue:`36384`, and backported
 to 3.8 by Achraf Merzouki)
+
+Notable security feature in 3.8.14
+==================================
+
+Converting between :class:`int` and :class:`str` in bases other than 2
+(binary), 4, 8 (octal), 16 (hexadecimal), or 32 such as base 10 (decimal)
+now raises a :exc:`ValueError` if the number of digits in string form is
+above a limit to avoid potential denial of service attacks due to the
+algorithmic complexity. This is a mitigation for `CVE-2020-10735
+<https://cve.mitre.org/cgi-bin/cvename.cgi?name=CVE-2020-10735>`_.
+This limit can be configured or disabled by environment variable, command
+line flag, or :mod:`sys` APIs. See the :ref:`integer string conversion
+length limitation <int_max_str_digits>` documentation.  The default limit
+is 4300 digits in string form.