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GimpApplication

CVE-2026-0797

HIGH · 8.8 CVSS v3.1 Published 2026-02-20
Patch available
A vendor patch is available. No clean upgrade release — apply the published patch.
See remediation →
95/100
Remediation priority · Urgent
Remotely reachable No privileges Patch available

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
GIMP ICO File Parsing Heap-based Buffer Overflow Remote Code Execution Vulnerability. This vulnerability allows remote attackers to execute arbitrary code on affected installations of GIMP. 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 ICO files. The issue results from the lack of proper validation of the length of user-supplied data prior to copying it to a heap-based buffer. An attacker can leverage this vulnerability to execute code in the context of the current process. Was ZDI-CAN-28599.

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
How this class of weakness works · CWE-122

Data overflows a buffer allocated on the heap, corrupting neighbouring heap structures and allocator metadata that a patient attacker can groom into control of execution. It is subtler than a stack overflow but just as dangerous. The fix is validating lengths before every write and using safe allocators and bounded operations.

General guidance for the heap-based buffer overflow class — the official description and references above are authoritative for this specific CVE. Want a bespoke review and a reviewed fix? Ask our team →

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
GimpApplication
Affected:= 3.2.0

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
Required
Scope
Unchanged
Confidentiality
High
Integrity
High
Availability
High

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

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
Patch available Apply the vendor patch
Vendor patch gitlab.gnome.org →
Recommended fix Moderate confidence
  1. 1. Identify the affected GIMP version by checking Help > About (or `gimp --version` command) - confirm version is 3.2.0
  2. 2. Obtain the source code from the official GIMP repository at gitlab.gnome.org/GNOME/gimp
  3. 3. Review the specific patch commit at https://gitlab.gnome.org/GNOME/gimp/-/commit/69cc6b1a6645dc9c4d7b484483dbe6a84b922b9c to understand the fix for the ICO file parsing heap-based buffer overflow (CWE-122)
  4. 4. Either: a) Apply the fix from commit 69cc6b1a6645dc9c4d7b484483dbe6a84b922b9c to your local GIMP build, OR b) Wait for an official stable release that includes this patch
  5. 5. Rebuild GIMP from source if applying the patch manually
  6. 6. Verify the fix by testing with a crafted ICO file in a controlled environment - ensure GIMP no longer crashes or allows code execution when parsing malformed ICO files
  7. 7. Deploy the fixed version to production systems

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

We can apply and verify the patch for your build — typical engagement from $1,950. Get the patch applied

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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-2026-0797 in production — separate from our analysis above.

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What this is

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