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Hdf5Application · Hdfgroup

CVE-2024-32613

HIGH · 7.4 CVSS v3.1 Published 2024-05-14
Fix available
A fix is available. Upgrade to 1.14.4 or later.
See remediation →
79/100
Remediation priority · High
No privileges Zero-click

Official description Straight from the sourceThe vendor's or NVD's own wording, published unedited. Authoritative, but often terse — it says what broke, rarely what to do.

NVD · unedited
HDF5 Library through 1.14.3 contains a heap-based buffer over-read in the function H5HL__fl_deserialize in H5HLcache.c, a different vulnerability than CVE-2024-32612.

Technical summary Written by usOur analysis, written from the advisory, the CVSS vector and the affected-version data. It adds context the advisory leaves out, and never invents facts that are not in the source.

dbcve analysis · high confidence

HDF5 Library through 1.14.3 contains a heap-based buffer over-read vulnerability in the H5HL__fl_deserialize function in H5HLcache.c. This memory safety issue occurs during deserialization of local heap metadata, allowing read access beyond allocated buffer boundaries. The vulnerability can be triggered by opening a specially crafted HDF5 file that manipulates the local heap free list descriptor structures.

MitigationUpgrade HDF5 Library to version 1.14.4 or later once available, which should contain the patched bounds-checking in H5HL__fl_deserialize. Until then, validate all HDF5 files from untrusted sources using file inspection tools before loading.

Verify against the referenced sources before acting — the references below are authoritative for this CVE, this summary is not.

Affected products & versions What the vendor confirmedThe version ranges the vendor confirmed as vulnerable. If your version sits inside a range here, treat yourself as exposed until you have upgraded.

NVD · CPE data
Hdf5Application
Affected:< 1.14.4

CVSS breakdown How the score is builtThe industry scoring standard. It rates how the flaw is reached, what it takes to exploit, and what an attacker gains — the score is derived from those, not the other way round.

From the vector
Attack vector
Local
Complexity
High
Privileges
None
User interaction
None
Scope
Unchanged
Confidentiality
High
Integrity
High
Availability
High

CVSS:3.1/AV:L/AC:H/PR:N/UI:N/S:U/C:H/I:H/A:H

Am I affected? How to checkSteps we derive from the advisory and the affected-version data, so you can decide whether this CVE reaches your setup. They are a guide, not a scan — your own configuration is the authority.

dbcve checks

Work through these to decide whether this CVE applies to you.

  1. Check HDF5 library version
    Run 'h5dump --version' or 'pkg-config --modversion hdf5' to retrieve the installed HDF5 library version. On Windows, check the file properties of hdf5.dll or libhdf5.so on Linux.
    Affected if The installed version is lower than 1.14.4 (e.g., 1.14.3, 1.14.2, 1.14.0, or any 1.1x.x version below 1.14.4).
  2. Identify HDF5 usage in applications
    Review applications or scripts that use HDF5 libraries (e.g., Python h5py, C/C++ programs linking against libhdf5, R hdf5 packages). Use 'ldd <executable>' or 'ldconfig -p | grep hdf5' to find linked HDF5 libraries.
    Affected if Any application that loads HDF5 files is using a version < 1.14.4.
  3. Determine if untrusted HDF5 files are processed
    Audit workflows that involve opening HDF5 files from external or untrusted sources. Check file provenance and whether files undergo validation before loading.
    Affected if You open HDF5 files from untrusted or unknown sources using an affected HDF5 version < 1.14.4.

You are affected if your installed HDF5 library version is below 1.14.4 and you process HDF5 files, particularly from untrusted sources, as the vulnerability triggers upon opening specially crafted files.

Generated from the published advisory. Verify against your own configuration.

Check your environment

Paste your version and any relevant configuration and it will be compared against the affected criteria above. Do not include secrets or credentials.

AI-assisted, checked against the advisory. Informational, not a guarantee.

Remediation Closing itWhat it takes to close this. Where a vendor fix exists we point at it; where none exists we say so plainly, and can build one. Effort estimates are scoped from the advisory, not from your codebase.

dbcve · scoped
Upgrade available Upgrade to 1.14.4 or later
Fixed in 1.14.4
Interim mitigation

Upgrade HDF5 Library to version 1.14.4 or later once available, which should contain the patched bounds-checking in H5HL__fl_deserialize. Until then, validate all HDF5 files from untrusted sources using file inspection tools before loading.

Recommended fix High confidence

HDF5 1.14.4

  1. 1. Identify all systems and applications that link against the HDF5 library in your environment
  2. 2. Download HDF5 version 1.14.4 or later from the official HDF Group website (www.hdfgroup.org) or your distribution's package manager
  3. 3. Before upgrading, review the HDF5 1.14.4 release notes for any API changes or deprecations that may affect your applications
  4. 4. Compile and install HDF5 1.14.4 following the build instructions for your platform (typically ./configure, make, make install for source builds)
  5. 5. Rebuild any applications that link against HDF5 to ensure they use the new library version
  6. 6. Run your test suite to verify functionality after the upgrade
  7. 7. Deploy the updated library to production systems
Caveat Review 1.14.4 release notes for API changes; some deprecated functions may have been removed

Generated from the published advisory — verify against the referenced sources before acting.

Fix this in Hdf5 Scoped from the published advisory
  • Consultation4.0 h
  • Implementation8.0 h
  • Testing6.0 h
  • Review / QA4.0 h
22.0 hours of engineering $3,860
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References Go to the primary sourcePrimary sources — vendor advisories, patches and trackers. Where our summary and a reference disagree, the reference wins.

Primary sources

Practitioner notes

Contributed

Peer-ranked notes from engineers who’ve handled CVE-2024-32613 in production — separate from our analysis above.

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What this is

A place for practitioners to share what actually worked: a mitigation you’ve tested, a configuration change, a version- or environment-specific caveat, or a link to a verified patch. The most useful notes rise to the top as peers upvote them, so the signal stays high.

What belongs here
  • Verified mitigations, workarounds, and config changes
  • Version or environment caveats, and links to real fixes
  • No weaponised exploit code, or anything meant to cause harm
  • No spam, self-promotion, credentials, or personal data