dbcve.org
Hdf5Application · Hdfgroup

CVE-2024-32615

CRITICAL · 9.8 CVSS v3.1 Published 2024-05-14
Fix available
A fix is available. Upgrade to 1.14.4 or later.
See remediation →
100/100
Remediation priority · Urgent
Remotely reachable 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 overflow in H5Z__nbit_decompress_one_byte in H5Znbit.c, caused by the earlier use of an initialized pointer.

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

Heap-based buffer overflow vulnerability in HDF5 Library's nbit decompression function (H5Z__nbit_decompress_one_byte in H5Znbit.c). An uninitialized pointer is used before proper initialization, leading to memory corruption during decompression operations. This can be exploited via crafted HDF5 files to achieve arbitrary code execution.

MitigationUpgrade HDF5 Library to version 1.14.4 or later. If upgrade is not immediately feasible, disable the nbit filter in HDF5 applications or implement input validation for HDF5 files using the nbit compression filter.

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
Network
Complexity
Low
Privileges
None
User interaction
None
Scope
Unchanged
Confidentiality
High
Integrity
High
Availability
High

CVSS:3.1/AV:N/AC:L/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 installed HDF5 library version
    Run 'h5dump --version' or 'h5ls --version' to display the HDF5 library version. Alternatively, check with 'pkg-config --modversion hdf5' or inspect the shared library file (libhdf5.so) for its version metadata.
    Affected if The reported version is any version prior to 1.14.4 (for example, 1.14.3, 1.14.2, 1.10.x, or earlier).
  2. Identify HDF5 applications and tools in use
    Locate any locally installed HDF5 utilities (h5dump, h5ls, h5copy, h5diff) and linked libraries by searching for libhdf5 files: 'find /usr -name "libhdf5*" 2>/dev/null' or 'ldconfig -p | grep hdf5'.
    Affected if Any HDF5 library version prior to 1.14.4 is found in the environment.
  3. Detect nbit compression filter usage in HDF5 files
    Inspect HDF5 files for nbit filter (filter ID 5) usage by running 'h5dump -pH <filename>' and checking the Filter section. The nbit filter appears as filter type 5 or named 'nbit'.
    Affected if Any HDF5 file in the environment uses the nbit compression filter (visible as filter ID 5 in the h5dump output).
  4. Scan for third-party applications using HDF5
    Search application binaries and scripts that link against HDF5 libraries: 'ldd <binary> | grep hdf5' or grep for HDF5 usage in application documentation and dependencies.
    Affected if Any application or tool links to or uses an HDF5 library version prior to 1.14.4.

The environment is affected if any HDF5 library version installed is earlier than 1.14.4 AND the system processes HDF5 files that may use the nbit compression filter.

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. If upgrade is not immediately feasible, disable the nbit filter in HDF5 applications or implement input validation for HDF5 files using the nbit compression filter.

Recommended fix High confidence

1.14.4

  1. Identify the current HDF5 version installed in your environment using your package manager or by checking the library version
  2. Download HDF5 version 1.14.4 or later from the official HDF Group website (www.hdfgroup.org) or the GitHub releases page
  3. Upgrade HDF5 to version 1.14.4 using your system's package manager or by compiling from source
  4. If building from source, ensure any dependent applications are rebuilt against the new HDF5 library
  5. Verify the new version is correctly installed and the vulnerability is resolved

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

Fix this in Hdf5 Scoped from the published advisory
  • Consultation2.0 h
  • Implementation4.0 h
  • Testing8.0 h
  • Review / QA3.0 h
17.0 hours of engineering $2,860
Get the upgrade done

An estimate, not a bill — we confirm scope with you before any work starts. Need it this week? Rush from $4,576.

Scan for this in your stack

Free · runs locally
dbcve dependency scanner

Check whether your project pulls in CVE-2024-32615 — or any other known-vulnerable package — straight from your lock files. Free and open source; it runs locally and uploads nothing.

Get it on GitHub Scan in the browser

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-2024-32615 in production — separate from our analysis above.

No notes yet

Be the first to add a field note for this CVE — a mitigation you’ve verified, a version caveat, or a link to a working fix. Sign in above to contribute.

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