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LibrawApplication

CVE-2026-21413

CRITICAL · 9.8 CVSS v3.1 Published 2026-04-07
Mitigation only
No fix yet — a mitigation exists. There is no fixed release. A documented workaround reduces exposure in the meantime.
See remediation →
100/100
Remediation priority · Urgent
Public exploit 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
A heap-based buffer overflow vulnerability exists in the lossless_jpeg_load_raw functionality of LibRaw Commit 0b56545 and Commit d20315b. A specially crafted malicious file can lead to a heap buffer overflow. An attacker can provide a malicious file to trigger this vulnerability.

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 confidence

A heap-based buffer overflow vulnerability exists in LibRaw's lossless_jpeg_load_raw function. Processing a specially crafted malicious image file can cause writes beyond allocated heap buffer boundaries, potentially allowing arbitrary code execution. The vulnerability affects specific commits (0b56545 and d20315b) of the LibRaw library used for raw digital image processing.

MitigationUpdate LibRaw to a version containing the security patch for this vulnerability. Until patched, avoid processing untrusted raw image files with affected versions and consider sandboxing image processing operations.

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
LibrawApplication
Affected:= 0.22.0= 0.22.1

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. Identify installed LibRaw version
    Run 'pkg-config --modversion libraw' or check the library file version string (e.g., 'strings libraw.so | grep -i version' or inspect the DLL properties on Windows)
    Affected if The version is exactly 0.22.0 or 0.22.1 (exact match per CVE)
  2. Confirm LibRaw is linked to your application
    Review your application's dependency list using 'ldd' on Linux, 'dumpbin /dependents' on Windows, or inspect build configuration files for libraw linkage
    Affected if LibRaw is actively loaded by your application or service
  3. Determine if JPEG processing is performed
    Inspect application logs, code, or configuration to see if JPEG files are processed through LibRaw's raw image loading functions
    Affected if Your application uses LibRaw to process JPEG-based raw image files (CRW, CR2, NEF, ARW, DNG, or similar formats using JPEG compression)
  4. Check for lossless JPEG code path usage
    Review whether your image processing workflow invokes the lossless_jpeg_load_raw function - this is typically used for lossless-compressed RAW formats from Sony, Canon, and Nikon cameras
    Affected if Your image processing involves lossless-compressed RAW files from affected camera manufacturers
  5. Verify exposure to untrusted image input
    Audit whether your application accepts image uploads or processes images from untrusted sources without sandboxing or validation
    Affected if User-supplied or network-received images are passed directly to LibRaw for processing without prior validation

You are affected if LibRaw version 0.22.0 or 0.22.1 is installed AND your application processes JPEG-compressed or lossless-compressed RAW images from potentially untrusted sources.

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.

From vendor data
Mitigation available No clean upgrade yet — mitigate in the meantime
Mitigation

Update LibRaw to a version containing the security patch for this vulnerability. Until patched, avoid processing untrusted raw image files with affected versions and consider sandboxing image processing operations.

Fix this in Libraw Scoped from the published advisory
  • Consultation2.0 h
  • Implementation4.0 h
  • Testing6.0 h
  • Review / QA3.0 h
15.0 hours of engineering $2,560
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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-2026-21413 in production — separate from our analysis above.

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What this is

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What belongs here
  • Verified mitigations, workarounds, and config changes
  • Version or environment caveats, and links to real fixes
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