Cyber Resilience

CVE-2026-34379

Memory Safety in Openexr 3.2.0 – 3.2.7

Public PoCMemory Safety
Published
06 April 2026
Modified
15 July 2026
Patch / advisory
CVSS Score v3.1 7.1
Click a component to see what it means
Raw vectorCVSS:3.1/AV:N/AC:L/PR:N/UI:R/S:U/C:N/I:L/A:H
EPSS Score 0.0028 21th percentile
Risk Priority 53 floored blend · peak EPSS

Summary

CVE-2026-34379 is a high-severity Incorrect Type Conversion or Cast (CWE-704) vulnerability in Openexr Openexr. Its CVSS base score is 7.1 (High).

Operationally, exploitation aligns with the MITRE ATT&CK technique Exploitation for Privilege Escalation (T1068); ranked at the 21th 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 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-2026-34379 is a misaligned memory write vulnerability in the OpenEXR library, which provides the specification and reference implementation for the EXR file format used in the motion picture industry for image storage. The issue resides in the LossyDctDecoder_execute() function at src/lib/OpenEXRCore/internal_dwa_decoder.h:749. When decoding a DWA or DWAB-compressed EXR file with a FLOAT-type channel, the decoder performs an in-place HALF-to-FLOAT conversion by casting an unaligned uint8_t* row pointer to float* and writing through it. This results in undefined behavior under the C standard because the row buffer may not be 4-byte aligned, leading to immediate crashes on architectures enforcing alignment such as ARM and RISC-V. On x86, it is tolerated at runtime but remains exploitable due to compiler optimizations assuming aligned access. Affected versions range from 3.2.0 up to but not including 3.2.7, 3.3.9, and 3.4.9. The vulnerability carries a CVSS v3.1 base score of 7.1 (AV:N/AC:L/PR:N/UI:R/S:U/C:N/I:L/A:H) and is associated with CWEs 704 (Incorrect Type Conversion or Cast), 787 (Out-of-bounds Write), and 843 (Access of Resource Using Incompatible Type).

An attacker can exploit this vulnerability remotely with low complexity and no privileges by tricking a user into opening a specially crafted DWA or DWAB-compressed EXR file containing a FLOAT-type channel. User interaction is required, such as processing the file in an application that uses vulnerable OpenEXR versions for decoding. Successful exploitation triggers undefined behavior, typically causing application crashes due to the misaligned write, which disrupts availability with high impact. On x86 systems, it may enable further code execution or memory corruption via compiler optimizations, with low integrity impact but no confidentiality loss.

Mitigation is available through patches released by the Academy Software Foundation. Vulnerable versions should be upgraded to OpenEXR 3.2.7, 3.3.9, or 3.4.9, with corresponding release notes and binaries provided on GitHub. Additional details are documented in the project's security advisory at GHSA-w88v-vqhq-5p24.

EU & UK References

Vulnerability Data

OpenEXR provides the specification and reference implementation of the EXR file format, an image storage format for the motion picture industry. From 3.2.0 to before 3.2.7, 3.3.9, and 3.4.9, a misaligned memory write vulnerability exists in LossyDctDecoder_execute() in src/lib/OpenEXRCore/internal_dwa_decoder.h:749. When…

more

decoding a DWA or DWAB-compressed EXR file containing a FLOAT-type channel, the decoder performs an in-place HALF→FLOAT conversion by casting an unaligned uint8_t * row pointer to float * and writing through it. Because the row buffer may not be 4-byte aligned, this constitutes undefined behavior under the C standard and crashes immediately on architectures that enforce alignment (ARM, RISC-V, etc.). On x86 it is silently tolerated at runtime but remains exploitable via compiler optimizations that assume aligned access. This vulnerability is fixed in 3.2.7, 3.3.9, and 3.4.9.

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-2023-5841Same product: Openexr Openexr
CVE-2023-24823Shared CWE-787, CWE-843
CVE-2024-38207Shared CWE-787, CWE-843
CVE-2024-3298Shared CWE-787, CWE-843
CVE-2023-38128Shared CWE-787, CWE-843
CVE-2024-5830Shared CWE-787, CWE-843
CVE-2023-36017Shared CWE-787, CWE-843
CVE-2023-1078Shared CWE-787, CWE-843
CVE-2020-16009Shared CWE-787, CWE-843
CVE-2026-25503Shared CWE-704, CWE-843

Affected Assets

openexr
openexr
3.2.0 — 3.2.7 · 3.3.0 — 3.3.9 · 3.4.0 — 3.4.9

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)
  • V1.5.2
  • V3.2.3
  • V15.3.5

Mitigating Controls (NIST 800-53 r5) AI

Developer testing and evaluation (static analysis, fuzzing, unit tests) directly finds incorrect type conversions or casts.

Validating inputs to API control parameters ensures only permitted values are supplied, structurally eliminating the source of undefined behavior.

Requiring documented development standards and tools can mandate safe typing, casting rules, and compiler checks that stop the weakness from being introduced.

Security engineering principles can require type-safe design and casting practices that structurally avoid incorrect conversions.

Memory-protection mechanisms limit the exploitability and blast radius of a successful out-of-bounds write.

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 prevent type-conversion flaws via coding standards, reviews, and testing.

ID.RA-01 partial match
prevents

Vulnerability scanning and recording can discover out-of-bounds write flaws so they can be remediated.

PR.PS-02 partial match
prevents

Patching or replacing vulnerable software directly eliminates known instances of this coding weakness.

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 can uncover type-conversion defects before release.

prevents

Secure development lifecycle includes type-safety reviews that reduce incorrect casts.

prevents

Application security requirements can mandate strong typing and safe casting rules.

degrades

Secure architecture principles discourage unsafe type conversions in design.

prevents

Secure coding standards directly forbid or detect incorrect type casts.

prevents

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

References