Cyber Resilience

CVE-2026-20884

Memory Safety in Libraw 0.22.1

Public PoCMemory Safety
Published
07 April 2026
Modified
10 April 2026
CVSS Score v3.1 8.1
Click a component to see what it means
Raw vectorCVSS:3.1/AV:N/AC:H/PR:N/UI:N/S:U/C:H/I:H/A:H
EPSS Score 0.0045 37th percentile
Risk Priority 59 floored blend · peak EPSS

Summary

CVE-2026-20884 is a high-severity Integer Overflow or Wraparound (CWE-190) vulnerability in Libraw Libraw. Its CVSS base score is 8.1 (High).

Operationally, exploitation aligns with the MITRE ATT&CK technique Exploitation for Privilege Escalation (T1068); ranked at the 37th percentile by exploit likelihood (below the median); it is not currently listed in the CISA KEV catalog; a public proof-of-concept is referenced.

The strongest mitigations our analysis identified map to SA-11 (Developer Testing and Evaluation) and SA-8 (Security and Privacy Engineering Principles) — see the control section below for these in your framework.

Deeper analysis AI-assisted summary

Synthesised by an AI model from the NVD description and linked references — a reading aid, not an authoritative source.

An integer overflow vulnerability, tracked as CVE-2026-20884, affects the deflate_dng_load_raw functionality in LibRaw at commit 8dc68e2. This flaw allows a specially crafted malicious file to trigger a heap buffer overflow. LibRaw is a library commonly used for processing raw image files, making applications that rely on it for DNG file handling potentially susceptible.

The vulnerability carries a CVSS v3.1 base score of 8.1 (AV:N/AC:H/PR:N/UI:N/S:U/C:H/I:H/A:H), indicating high severity with network vector, high attack complexity, no privileges or user interaction required, and significant impacts on confidentiality, integrity, and availability. An attacker can exploit it by supplying a malicious file to a vulnerable LibRaw instance, potentially leading to arbitrary code execution or denial of service through the heap overflow.

Mitigation details are available in the Talos Intelligence advisories at https://talosintelligence.com/vulnerability_reports/TALOS-2026-2364 and https://www.talosintelligence.com/vulnerability_reports/TALOS-2026-2364. Security practitioners should review these reports for patch information, workarounds, and affected versions.

EU & UK References

Vulnerability Data

An integer overflow vulnerability exists in the deflate_dng_load_raw functionality of LibRaw Commit 8dc68e2. A specially crafted malicious file can lead to a heap buffer overflow. An attacker can provide a malicious file to trigger this vulnerability.

CWE(s)

Related Threats

MITRE ATT&CK Enterprise Techniques

T1068 Exploitation for Privilege Escalation Privilege Escalation
Adversaries may exploit software vulnerabilities in an attempt to elevate privileges.
T1190 Exploit Public-Facing Application Initial Access
Adversaries may attempt to exploit a weakness in an Internet-facing host or system to initially access a network.
T1203 Exploitation for Client Execution Execution
Adversaries may exploit software vulnerabilities in client applications to execute code.
T1210 Exploitation of Remote Services Lateral Movement
Adversaries may exploit remote services to gain unauthorized access to internal systems once inside of a network.
Derived from this CVE’s CWE(s) via the direct CWE→ATT&CK cross-walk.

CVEs Like This One

CVE-2026-24450Same product: Libraw Libraw
CVE-2026-24660Same product: Libraw Libraw
CVE-2026-20889Same product: Libraw Libraw
CVE-2026-20911Same product: Libraw Libraw
CVE-2025-43963Same product: Libraw Libraw
CVE-2025-43964Same product: Libraw Libraw
CVE-2025-43962Same product: Libraw Libraw
CVE-2025-43961Same product: Libraw Libraw
CVE-2026-5342Same product: Libraw Libraw
CVE-2026-21413Same product: Libraw Libraw

Affected Assets

libraw
libraw
0.22.1

Mitigating Controls

Control response

Prevent
Stop it (NIST 800-53)

Detect
Catch it (NIST detect / respond)

Harden
Shrink the surface (DISA STIG)

Validate
Prove the fix (OWASP ASVS)
  • V5.2.6

Mitigating Controls (NIST 800-53 r5) AI

Developer testing and evaluation (static analysis, fuzzing, unit tests) directly finds integer overflow defects before deployment.

Secure engineering principles require use of safe arithmetic constructs or language features that structurally eliminate integer overflow during calculation.

Input validation enforces bounds on values before arithmetic, stopping the conditions that trigger overflow or wraparound.

Mitigating Controls (NIST CSF 2.0) AI

Derived directly from the weakness types (CWEs) cited in the NVD entry via our AI-authored CWE→CSF cross-walk (authority under review) — links open the control.

PR.PS-06 mostly match
prevents

Secure SDLC practices directly require use of safe arithmetic, bounds checks, and testing that prevent integer overflows.

Mitigating Controls (ISO/IEC 27001:2022 Annex A) AI

Derived directly from the weakness types (CWEs) cited in the NVD entry via our AI-authored CWE→ISO cross-walk (authority under review) — links open the control.

finds

Security testing in development can detect integer overflows before release.

prevents

Secure SDLC mandates input validation and arithmetic checks that prevent integer overflows.

degrades

Application security requirements include bounds checking and safe arithmetic to avoid overflow conditions.

degrades

Secure architecture principles require defensive coding patterns that mitigate integer wraparound risks.

prevents

Secure coding standards explicitly forbid unsafe integer operations and mandate overflow-safe constructs.

References