CVE-2026-42170
HIGH 7.8A heap-based buffer overflow vulnerability exists in the GIMP DDS (DirectDraw Surface) file parser. When a crafted DDS file declares a D3D9 pixel format but sets a lower bits-per-pixel (bpp) value in the header, the loader allocates an undersized heap buffer. Subsequent pixel data consumption at the real format's stride causes a write past the heap buffer boundary, leading to heap metadata corruption and potential code execution.
Severe if exploited (CVSS 7.8), but no known exploitation and low modeled probability. Patch on a normal cadence.
Exploitation likelihood
0.2%chance of exploitation in 30 days · 9th percentile
Impact if exploited
7.8CVSS 3.1 · HIGH
- ConfidentialityHigh
- IntegrityHigh
- AvailabilityHigh
What an attacker needs
- ⚠Access: Requires local access to the host
- ✓Privileges: No account or privileges required
- ⚠User interaction: A user must take an action (click / open a file)
- ✓Complexity: No special conditions — reliably repeatable
✓ lowers the bar for an attacker · ⚠ raises it
Proof of concept & exploit code
- github-search Search GitHub for public PoC repos
Test against your own equipment
curl -s https://vulnpedia.com/cve/CVE-2026-42170/poc.jsonMachine-readable PoC index for this CVE (for automation).Listed for defensive triage, patch verification, and authorized testing on systems you own. Machine-readable: /cve/CVE-2026-42170/poc.json
Affected
Vendors Red Hat
Products Red Hat Enterprise Linux 6 Red Hat Enterprise Linux 7 Red Hat Enterprise Linux 8 Red Hat Enterprise Linux 9
Weakness (CWE)
- CWE-131: Incorrect Calculation of Buffer Size
CVSS vector
CVSS:3.1/AV:L/AC:L/PR:N/UI:R/S:U/C:H/I:H/A:H
All CVSS metrics
- HIGH 7.8 v3.1 · CNA Primary
CVSS:3.1/AV:L/AC:L/PR:N/UI:R/S:U/C:H/I:H/A:H - HIGH 7.8 v3.1 · NVD Secondary
CVSS:3.1/AV:L/AC:L/PR:N/UI:R/S:U/C:H/I:H/A:H