CVE-2026-19024: CWE-476 NULL pointer dereference in The HDF Group HDF5
CVE-2026-19024 is a high-severity vulnerability in The HDF Group's HDF5 library before version 2.1.1. It involves a NULL pointer dereference in the H5Pget_fill_value function triggered by a dataset with a version 1 or 2 fill value message that has the "defined" flag set and a negative size field. This improper handling leads to a NULL datatype being passed to H5T_path_find, causing a denial of service.
AI Analysis
Technical Summary
This vulnerability arises from improper normalization of a negative size field in fill value messages of datasets in HDF5 versions before 2.1.1. When the "defined" flag is set and the size field is negative, the library fails to convert this to its "undefined" sentinel value, resulting in a NULL pointer dereference in the H5Pget_fill_value function. This NULL pointer is then passed to H5T_path_find, causing the application to crash and enabling denial of service attacks.
Potential Impact
An attacker can cause a denial of service by crafting a dataset with specific fill value message properties that trigger a NULL pointer dereference in the HDF5 library. This leads to application crashes, potentially disrupting services relying on HDF5 for data handling.
Mitigation Recommendations
Patch status is not yet confirmed — check the vendor advisory for current remediation guidance. Since no official fix or patch information is provided, users should monitor The HDF Group advisories for updates. Until a fix is available, avoid processing untrusted datasets with suspicious fill value messages.
CVE-2026-19024: CWE-476 NULL pointer dereference in The HDF Group HDF5
Description
CVE-2026-19024 is a high-severity vulnerability in The HDF Group's HDF5 library before version 2.1.1. It involves a NULL pointer dereference in the H5Pget_fill_value function triggered by a dataset with a version 1 or 2 fill value message that has the "defined" flag set and a negative size field. This improper handling leads to a NULL datatype being passed to H5T_path_find, causing a denial of service.
CVSS v4.0
Score 8.2high
Affected software
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Weaknesses
AI-Powered Analysis
Machine-generated threat intelligence
Technical Analysis
This vulnerability arises from improper normalization of a negative size field in fill value messages of datasets in HDF5 versions before 2.1.1. When the "defined" flag is set and the size field is negative, the library fails to convert this to its "undefined" sentinel value, resulting in a NULL pointer dereference in the H5Pget_fill_value function. This NULL pointer is then passed to H5T_path_find, causing the application to crash and enabling denial of service attacks.
Potential Impact
An attacker can cause a denial of service by crafting a dataset with specific fill value message properties that trigger a NULL pointer dereference in the HDF5 library. This leads to application crashes, potentially disrupting services relying on HDF5 for data handling.
Mitigation Recommendations
Patch status is not yet confirmed — check the vendor advisory for current remediation guidance. Since no official fix or patch information is provided, users should monitor The HDF Group advisories for updates. Until a fix is available, avoid processing untrusted datasets with suspicious fill value messages.
Technical Details
- Data Version
- 5.2
- Assigner Short Name
- HDFG
- Date Reserved
- 2026-08-05T22:12:47.262Z
- Cvss Version
- 4.0
- State
- PUBLISHED
- Remediation Level
- null
Threat ID: 6a73bc29bf8831d53990b442
Added to database: 08/05/2026, 22:41:45 UTC
Last enriched: 08/05/2026, 22:56:10 UTC
Last updated: 08/06/2026, 01:58:32 UTC
Views: 7
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