GIMP
CVE-2026-0797
HIGH
Attack ChainAIDerived
Hypothetical attack flow derived from CVE metadata – not a confirmed exploit chain
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AccessCraft malicious ICO with oversized length field
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DeliveryDeliver via email, download, or web page
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ExploitVictim opens file in GIMP
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ExecutionHeap buffer overflow in ICO parser
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ImpactExecute arbitrary code as current user
Vulnerability Assessment
| Weakness |
CWE
OWASP Top 10:2025
A06:2021 - Vulnerable and Outdated Components
ASVS 5.0
V15 - Secure Coding and Architecture Heap buffer bounds checking
MITRE ATT&CK
1 technique across 1 tactic: Execution The technique list with ATT&CK links and the kill-chain view is part of the Basic plan and up. |
| Exploitation Conditions | Exploitation requires the victim to open an attacker-supplied malicious ICO file in GIMP (or visit a page that delivers one for opening) - the ICO import/parsing path must be invoked on the crafted file, which is the exact triggering feature. The CVSS vector confirms no authentication or privileges are needed (PR:N) but mandatory user interaction (UI:R), so the principal limiting factor is that the attacker cannot trigger the flaw without convincing a user to open the file; there is no automatic or unattended exploitation. A further limiter is version scope: the only confirmed-affected build is GIMP 3.2.0-rc1 (plus distro packages tracking it), so environments on unaffected GIMP versions are not exposed. Code executes only with the privileges of the user running GIMP (S:U, no scope change). |
| Impact | Signals are mixed but coherent. The CVSS 3.1 base score of 8.8 (AV:N/AC:L/PR:N/UI:R/S:U/C:H/I:H/A:H) reflects high impact and low attack complexity with no privileges, but the network vector is only realized through required user interaction (UI:R) - the victim must open a malicious file or page. Against this, the EPSS score is very low at 0.06% (19th percentile), and the vulnerability is not listed in CISA KEV, with no public exploit identified, indicating this is not currently subject to widespread or automated exploitation. No SSVC decision data was supplied. The net picture is a genuinely serious code-execution bug whose practical risk is bounded by the social-engineering step: it warrants prompt patching, especially on analyst, designer, and multi-user workstations that routinely open untrusted images, but it is not an emergency drop-everything mass-exploitation event. Note that the affected version is a release candidate (3.2.0-rc1), so production exposure may be narrower than GIMP's overall popularity suggests - verify which builds your environment actually runs. |
| Exploit ScenarioDerived | An attacker crafts a malicious ICO file with an oversized length field and delivers it via email attachment, a download link, or a web page, persuading a target to open it in GIMP. When GIMP's ICO parser copies the unchecked data, the heap buffer overflows and the attacker's code runs in the context of the user's GIMP process. No public proof-of-concept has been identified, but the low attack complexity (AC:L) means a working exploit primarily hinges on the social-engineering step. |
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Alert meAnalysisAIv5 – Jun 30, 2026
Remote code execution in GIMP 3.2.0-rc1 lets attackers run arbitrary code by tricking a user into opening a malicious ICO image file or visiting a page that delivers one. The flaw is a heap-based buffer overflow in the ICO file parser caused by missing length validation before a copy operation, and it executes code in the context of the GIMP process. No public exploit has been identified at time of analysis, and EPSS estimates exploitation probability at just 0.06% (19th percentile), consistent with a user-interaction-gated client-side bug rather than mass-exploited infrastructure.
Earlier versions of this analysis (4)
Arbitrary code execution in GIMP (GNU Image Manipulation Program) version 3.2.0 RC1 arises from a heap-based buffer overflow in the ICO image file parser, where attacker-controlled length fields are copied into an undersized heap buffer without validation. Remote attackers can run code in the context of the GIMP process if a user is lured into opening a malicious ICO file or visiting a page that delivers one. This is a ZDI-coordinated disclosure (ZDI-26-050 / ZDI-CAN-28599) with a vendor patch available; there is no public exploit identified at time of analysis and EPSS is very low (0.06%).
Heap-based buffer overflow in GIMP's ICO file parser (affecting GIMP 3.2.0 RC1) lets remote attackers achieve arbitrary code execution when a victim opens a malicious .ico file or visits a page that delivers one. The flaw, reported through Trend Micro's Zero Day Initiative (ZDI-CAN-28599 / ZDI-26-050), carries CVSS 8.8 and runs code in the context of the GIMP process, though exploitation is gated by required user interaction. No public exploit has been identified and EPSS is very low (0.06%), but vendor patches from upstream GNOME, Red Hat, and SUSE are already available.
Remote code execution in GIMP 3.2.0 RC1 arises from a heap-based buffer overflow in the ICO image file parser, where attacker-controlled length data is copied into a heap buffer without validation. An unauthenticated attacker (CVSS PR:N) who lures a victim into opening a malicious ICO file or visiting a malicious page (UI:R) can execute arbitrary code in the context of the GIMP process. There is no public exploit identified at time of analysis, EPSS risk is low (0.06%, 19th percentile), and the issue is not on CISA KEV, though the CVSS base score is 8.8 (High) and it was reported through Trend Micro's Zero Day Initiative (ZDI-26-050 / ZDI-CAN-28599).
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. [CVSS 7.8 HIGH]
RemediationAI
Apply the upstream fix from GNOME GitLab commit 69cc6b1a6645dc9c4d7b484483dbe6a84b922b9c by upgrading to a GIMP build that incorporates it; because the affected version is the 3.2.0-rc1 pre-release, move to the patched 3.2.0 stable/RC build or your distribution's updated package. Patch available per vendor advisory - on Red Hat systems install the updates from the relevant RHSA errata (e.g. RHSA-2026:4173 and the 5388-5437 series at https://access.redhat.com/security/cve/CVE-2026-0797), and on SUSE apply SUSE-SU-2026:0442 (https://www.suse.com/support/update/SUSE-SU-2026:0442/). Until patched, the practical compensating control is to avoid opening untrusted ICO files in GIMP and to treat ICO attachments and downloads from unknown sources as hostile; you can also restrict GIMP's handling of the .ico MIME type or remove/disable the ICO import plug-in if your workflow does not need it, accepting the trade-off that legitimate icon editing will break. Standard ZDI/vendor advisory references: https://www.zerodayinitiative.com/advisories/ZDI-26-050/ and https://vuldb.com/?id.343588.
Affects your stack
Find out whether the stacks and servers you run are on an affected version.
Checking this CVE against your own stacks and servers is part of the Basic plan and up.
Technical ContextAI · show details
GIMP (GNU Image Manipulation Program) is a widely used open-source raster graphics editor; the affected component is its ICO (Windows icon) file import plug-in. The root cause is classified as CWE-122 (Heap-based Buffer Overflow): the parser copies user-supplied data into a heap allocation without first validating that the declared length fits the destination buffer, allowing adjacent heap memory to be corrupted. The CPE string cpe:2.3:a:gimp:gimp:3.2.0:rc1 identifies the 3.2.0 release candidate 1 build as affected. Because image-format plug-ins process attacker-controlled structure fields (dimensions, data lengths) directly from the file, a malformed ICO can drive the overflow during what looks like an ordinary file open. The issue was discovered through Trend Micro's Zero Day Initiative (ZDI-CAN-28599 / ZDI-26-050).
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- Exploit and PoC references, threat intelligence from 22 sources
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Severity by source
AV:N/AC:L/PR:N/UI:R/S:U/C:H/I:H/A:H
File delivered over network but requires the user to open it (UI:R) with no privileges (PR:N); memory-corruption RCE in-process yields high C/I/A with no scope change.
AV:L/AC:L/PR:N/UI:R/S:U/C:H/I:H/A:H
Primary rating from Vendor (trendmicro).
CVSS VectorVendor: trendmicro
Lifecycle Timeline
3DescriptionCVE.org
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.
Zero Day Initiative Advisories
Executive ViewAI
GIMP 3.2.0-rc1 suffers from a remote code execution vulnerability triggered by opening malicious ICO image files; no public exploit identified at time of analysis. Organizations with GIMP users face system compromise and data breach risks, though low exploitation probability (0.1% EPSS) reflects user-interaction requirements. Immediate patching is critical to eliminate this attack vector.
Apply vendor patch. Until patching is complete, implement email security controls to block ICO file delivery, disable automatic image rendering in applications and browsers, and conduct security awareness training on risks of opening untrusted image files.
Threat Intelligence Overview
NVD
CVE.org
EPSS
VulDB
How this decision was reached
The engine reads each signal below and applies a fixed list of rules from top to bottom. The first rule that matches sets the recommended action – like a statement, every line is shown.
What every action level means
SSVC AssessmentENISA
Priority Score
Attack Technique
A buffer overflow occurs when a program writes more data to a memory buffer than it was allocated to hold, causing the excess data to spill into adjacent memory regions.
A heap overflow occurs when a program writes data beyond the bounds of a buffer allocated in the heap memory region.
Remote Code Execution represents the critical moment when an attacker successfully runs arbitrary code on a target system without physical access.
Affected Products (CPE)CVE.org
Buffer overflow in the readstr_upto function in plug-ins/script-fu/tinyscheme/scheme.c in GIMP 2.6.12 and earlier, and p
Multiple stack-based buffer overflows in file-xwd.c in the X Window Dump (XWD) plug-in in GIMP 2.8.2 allow remote attack
In GIMP 2.8.22, there is a heap-based buffer overflow in read_channel_data in plug-ins/common/file-psp.c. Rated high sev
fits-io.c in GIMP before 2.8.1 allows remote attackers to cause a denial of service (NULL pointer dereference and applic
An issue in gimp_layer_invalidate_boundary of GNOME GIMP 2.10.30 allows attackers to trigger an unhandled exception via
GIMP 2.10.30 and 2.99.10 are vulnerable to Buffer Overflow. Rated medium severity (CVSS 5.5), this vulnerability is no a
GIMP through 2.10.2 makes g_get_tmp_dir calls to establish temporary filenames, which may result in a filename that alre
Critical remote code execution vulnerability in GIMP's ICO file parser caused by an integer overflow (CWE-190) that lack
Remote code execution in GIMP 3.0.6 allows attackers to run arbitrary code by tricking a user into opening a malicious P
Use-after-free vulnerability in the xcf_load_image function in app/xcf/xcf-load.c in GIMP allows remote attackers to cau
Heap-based buffer overflow in GIMP's TIF file parser enables remote code execution when a user opens a crafted TIFF imag
Arbitrary code execution in GIMP results from a heap-based buffer overflow in the HDR file parser, where attacker-contro
Same weakness CWE-122 – Heap-based Buffer Overflow
View allVendor StatusVendor
SUSE
Severity: High| Product | Status |
|---|---|
| SUSE Liberty Linux 8 | Fixed |
| SUSE Liberty Linux 9 | Fixed |
| SUSE Linux Enterprise Desktop 15 SP7 SUSE Linux Enterprise Server 15 SP7 SUSE Linux Enterprise Server for SAP Applications 15 SP7 SUSE Linux Enterprise Workstation Extension 15 SP7 | Fixed |
| SUSE Linux Enterprise Module for Package Hub 15 SP7 | Fixed |
| openSUSE Leap 15.6 | Fixed |
| SUSE Linux Enterprise Desktop 15 SP7 | Fixed |
| SUSE Linux Enterprise Desktop 15 SP7 | Fixed |
| SUSE Linux Enterprise Module for Package Hub 15 SP7 | Fixed |
| SUSE Linux Enterprise Module for Package Hub 15 SP7 | Fixed |
| SUSE Linux Enterprise Server 15 SP7 | Fixed |
| SUSE Linux Enterprise Server 15 SP7 | Fixed |
| SUSE Linux Enterprise Server for SAP Applications 15 SP7 | Fixed |
| SUSE Linux Enterprise Server for SAP Applications 15 SP7 | Fixed |
| SUSE Linux Enterprise Workstation Extension 15 SP7 | Fixed |
| SUSE Linux Enterprise Workstation Extension 15 SP7 | Fixed |
| openSUSE Leap 15.6 | Fixed |
| SUSE Linux Enterprise Server 15 SP4 | Fixed |
| SUSE Linux Enterprise Server 15 SP5 | Fixed |
| SUSE Linux Enterprise Server 15 SP6 | Fixed |
| SUSE Linux Enterprise Server for SAP Applications 15 SP6 | Fixed |
| SUSE Linux Enterprise Desktop 15 SP4 | Fixed |
| SUSE Linux Enterprise Desktop 15 SP5 | Fixed |
| SUSE Linux Enterprise Desktop 15 SP6 | Fixed |
| SUSE Linux Enterprise Module for Package Hub 15 SP4 | Fixed |
| SUSE Linux Enterprise Module for Package Hub 15 SP5 | Fixed |
| SUSE Linux Enterprise Module for Package Hub 15 SP6 | Fixed |
| SUSE Linux Enterprise Server for SAP Applications 15 SP4 | Fixed |
| SUSE Linux Enterprise Server for SAP Applications 15 SP5 | Fixed |
| SUSE Linux Enterprise Workstation Extension 15 SP4 | Fixed |
| SUSE Linux Enterprise Workstation Extension 15 SP5 | Fixed |
| SUSE Linux Enterprise Workstation Extension 15 SP6 | Fixed |
| openSUSE Leap 15.4 | Fixed |
| openSUSE Leap 15.5 | Fixed |
GitHub PoC
Exploit-DB