Cyber Resilience

CVE-2026-31796

Memory Safety in Color Iccdev ≤ 2.3.1.5

Published
10 March 2026
Modified
13 March 2026
Patch / advisory
CVSS Score v3.1 7.8
Click a component to see what it means
Raw vectorCVSS:3.1/AV:L/AC:L/PR:N/UI:R/S:U/C:H/I:H/A:H
EPSS Score 0.0017 7th percentile
Risk Priority 55 floored blend · peak EPSS

Summary

CVE-2026-31796 is a high-severity Heap-based Buffer Overflow (CWE-122) vulnerability in Color Iccdev. Its CVSS base score is 7.8 (High).

Operationally, exploitation aligns with the MITRE ATT&CK technique Exploitation for Privilege Escalation (T1068); ranked at the 7th percentile by exploit likelihood (below the median); it is not currently listed in the CISA KEV catalog.

The strongest mitigations our analysis identified map to SA-11 (Developer Testing and Evaluation) and SI-10 (Information Input Validation) — 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.

CVE-2026-31796 is a heap-based buffer overflow vulnerability in the icCurvesFromXml() function within iccDEV, a set of libraries and tools for working with ICC color management profiles. Versions of iccDEV prior to 2.3.1.5 are affected, where processing malformed XML input can trigger the overflow, leading to heap memory corruption or application crash. The issue is classified under CWE-122 (Heap-based Buffer Overflow) and CWE-787 (Out-of-bounds Write), with a CVSS v3.1 base score of 7.8 (AV:L/AC:L/PR:N/UI:R/S:U/C:H/I:H/A:H).

A local attacker with no privileges can exploit this vulnerability by tricking a user into processing a specially crafted XML file via an application that uses the affected iccDEV libraries. Successful exploitation requires user interaction but low complexity, allowing the attacker to achieve high-impact effects including arbitrary code execution, data tampering, or denial of service through heap corruption.

Mitigation is available via the official patch in iccDEV version 2.3.1.5, as detailed in the project's GitHub security advisory (GHSA-mv6h-vpcg-pwfx), issue tracker (#651), pull request (#658), and release notes. Security practitioners should advise updating affected applications and libraries to 2.3.1.5 or later to prevent exploitation.

EU & UK References

Vulnerability Data

iccDEV provides a set of libraries and tools for working with ICC color management profiles. Prior to 2.3.1.5, there is a heap-based buffer overflow in icCurvesFromXml() causing heap memory corruption or crash. This vulnerability is fixed in 2.3.1.5.

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.
T1211 Exploitation for Stealth Stealth
Adversaries may exploit vulnerabilities to evade detection by hiding activity, suppressing logging, or operating within trusted or unmonitored components.
T1212 Exploitation for Credential Access Credential Access
Adversaries may exploit software vulnerabilities in an attempt to collect credentials.
Derived from this CVE’s CWE(s) via the direct CWE→ATT&CK cross-walk.

CVEs Like This One

CVE-2026-30979Same product: Color Iccdev
CVE-2026-21504Same product: Color Iccdev
CVE-2026-30985Same product: Color Iccdev
CVE-2026-25582Same product: Color Iccdev
CVE-2026-25583Same product: Color Iccdev
CVE-2026-21486Same product: Color Iccdev
CVE-2026-21678Same product: Color Iccdev
CVE-2026-34539Same product: Color Iccdev
CVE-2026-34540Same product: Color Iccdev
CVE-2026-34534Same product: Color Iccdev

Affected Assets

color
iccdev
≤ 2.3.1.5

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)
  • V1.4.1

Mitigating Controls (NIST 800-53 r5) AI

Developer testing and evaluation (including fuzzing and memory-error detectors) can discover heap overflows after they have been coded.

Input validation enforces bounds checking on data written to heap buffers, directly stopping the overflow condition from being introduced.

Requiring documented secure-development standards and tools can mandate bounds-checked coding practices that avoid the weakness.

Security engineering principles require use of memory-safe constructs and bounds-checked allocation routines that avoid introducing heap overflows.

Memory-protection mechanisms limit the ability of a heap overflow to execute attacker-controlled code or corrupt adjacent structures.

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 full match
prevents

Secure-development practices directly require bounds checking and safe memory handling that prevent heap overflows.

ID.RA-01 partial match
prevents

Vulnerability scanning and recording can discover heap-overflow flaws but does not prevent their introduction in code.

PR.PS-02 partial match
prevents

Timely patching removes known heap-overflow instances after they exist.

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 and acceptance can detect heap overflows before release.

prevents

Secure development lifecycle mandates practices that reduce the likelihood of introducing heap overflows.

prevents

Application security requirements can specify bounds-checking and safe memory APIs that mitigate heap overflows.

prevents

Secure architecture and engineering principles include memory-safety and input-validation controls that address heap overflows.

prevents

Secure coding standards directly prescribe techniques (safe functions, bounds checks) that prevent heap-based buffer overflows.

prevents

Change management can enforce review gates that catch unsafe memory operations before deployment.

References