CVE-2025-7994
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 · uneditedAshlar-Vellum Cobalt AR File Parsing Out-Of-Bounds Read Remote Code Execution Vulnerability. This vulnerability allows remote attackers to execute arbitrary code on affected installations of Ashlar-Vellum Cobalt. User interaction is required to exploit this vulnerability in that the target must visit a malicious page or open a malicious file. The specific flaw exists within the parsing of AR files. The issue results from the lack of proper validation of user-supplied data, which can result in a read past the end of an allocated data structure. An attacker can leverage this vulnerability to execute code in the context of the current process. Was ZDI-CAN-25976.
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 · moderate confidenceThis is an out-of-bounds read vulnerability in the AR file parser of Ashlar-Vellum Cobalt. The parser fails to properly validate user-supplied data during AR file parsing, allowing an attacker to read past the end of an allocated buffer. This memory corruption can be leveraged to achieve arbitrary code execution in the context of the current process.
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 dataall versionsCVSS 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
- Low
- Privileges
- None
- User interaction
- Required
- Scope
- Unchanged
- Confidentiality
- High
- Integrity
- High
- Availability
- High
CVSS:3.0/AV:L/AC:L/PR:N/UI:R/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 checksWork through these to decide whether this CVE applies to you.
-
Verify Ashlar Cobalt installationCheck if Ashlar-Vellum Cobalt software is installed on the system through standard software inventory or program directoriesAffected if Ashlar Cobalt is installed and any version is present
-
Identify AR file parser componentLocate the Cobalt application executable and check for AR file import or parsing functionality within the softwareAffected if AR file parsing feature exists in the installed Cobalt version
-
Inspect recent AR file activityReview the application for recent or cached AR file operations, including import logs, temporary files, or recent document historyAffected if AR files have been opened or processed by the application
-
Check application versionUse the application's built-in About or Help menu to display the installed version numberAffected if Any version of Ashlar Cobalt is running (all versions are affected)
-
Review AR file handling configurationExamine application settings or preferences for AR file import options and parser behaviorAffected if AR file parsing is enabled or available in the configuration
A user is affected if Ashlar-Vellum Cobalt is installed and the AR file parser feature is accessible, since all versions contain the vulnerability.
Generated from the published advisory. Verify against your own configuration.
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.
From vendor dataAvoid opening untrusted AR files from unknown or untrusted sources. Apply vendor patches when available and implement input validation and bounds checking in AR file parsing routines.
- Consultation6.0 h
- Implementation12.0 h
- Testing10.0 h
- Review / QA6.0 h
An estimate, not a bill — we confirm scope with you before any work starts. Need it this week? Rush from $9,504.
Scan for this in your stack
Free · runs locallyCheck whether your project pulls in CVE-2025-7994 — or any other known-vulnerable package — straight from your lock files. Free and open source; it runs locally and uploads nothing.
References Go to the primary sourcePrimary sources — vendor advisories, patches and trackers. Where our summary and a reference disagree, the reference wins.
Primary sourcesPractitioner notes
ContributedPeer-ranked notes from engineers who’ve handled CVE-2025-7994 in production — separate from our analysis above.
The advisory tells you what broke. It rarely tells you what actually worked. If you’ve dealt with this one, that detail is what the next engineer is searching for.
- The version that genuinely resolved it — not the one the vendor claimed
- A config change or rule that shut the vector down
- A gotcha in the upgrade path that cost you an afternoon
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.
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.
- 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