VulnerabilityPublished 11 Mar 2026

CVE-2026-3949: strukturag libheif · Out-of-bounds Read

Affects strukturag libheifSource CVE Database V5

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Public exploit available · CVSS 4.8 Medium.

Data as of 29 Oct 2026, 19:04 UTC

CVSS 4.0 base score

4.8Medium

How severe the flaw is on the 0–10 CVSS scale.

EPSS: 0.1% chance of exploitation in 30 days – higher than 2% of CVEsExploit Prediction Scoring System: the likelihood attackers will use this flaw soon.

CVSS:4.0/AV:L/AC:L/AT:N/PR:L/UI:N/VC:N/VI:N/VA:L/SC:N/SI:N/SA:N/E:P

Base metrics

Attack Vector: Local
Attack Complexity: Low
Attack Requirements: None
Privileges Required: Low
User Interaction: None
Vulnerable system confidentiality: None
Vulnerable system integrity: None
Vulnerable system availability: Low
Subsequent system confidentiality: None
Subsequent system integrity: None
Subsequent system availability: None

Threat metrics

Exploit Maturity: POC

Bold values are the worst case: easiest to exploit or largest impact.

Attack Vector: Local: The vulnerable system is not bound to the network stack and the attacker’s path is via read/write/execute capabilities. Either the attacker exploits the vulnerability by accessing the target system locally (e.g., keyboard, console), or through terminal emulation (e.g., SSH); or the attacker relies on User Interaction by another person to perform actions required to exploit the vulnerability (e.g., using social engineering techniques to trick a legitimate user into opening a malicious document).
Attack Complexity: Low: The attacker must take no measurable action to exploit the vulnerability. The attack requires no target-specific circumvention to exploit the vulnerability. An attacker can expect repeatable success against the vulnerable system.
Attack Requirements: None: The successful attack does not depend on the deployment and execution conditions of the vulnerable system. The attacker can expect to be able to reach the vulnerability and execute the exploit under all or most instances of the vulnerability.
Privileges Required: Low: The attacker requires privileges that provide basic capabilities that are typically limited to settings and resources owned by a single low-privileged user. Alternatively, an attacker with Low privileges has the ability to access only non-sensitive resources.
User Interaction: None: The vulnerable system can be exploited without interaction from any human user, other than the attacker.
Vulnerable system confidentiality: None: There is no loss of confidentiality within the Vulnerable System.
Vulnerable system integrity: None: There is no loss of integrity within the Vulnerable System.
Vulnerable system availability: Low: Performance is reduced or there are interruptions in resource availability. Even if repeated exploitation of the vulnerability is possible, the attacker does not have the ability to completely deny service to legitimate users. The resources in the Vulnerable System are either partially available all of the time, or fully available only some of the time, but overall there is no direct, serious consequence to the Vulnerable System.
Subsequent system confidentiality: None: There is no loss of confidentiality within the Subsequent System or all confidentiality impact is constrained to the Vulnerable System.
Subsequent system integrity: None: There is no loss of integrity within the Subsequent System or all integrity impact is constrained to the Vulnerable System.
Subsequent system availability: None: There is no impact to availability within the Subsequent System or all availability impact is constrained to the Vulnerable System.
Exploit Maturity: POC: Based on threat intelligence sources each of the following must apply: · Proof-of-concept is publicly available · No knowledge of reported attempts to exploit this vulnerability · No knowledge of publicly available solutions used to simplify attempts to exploit the vulnerability

Definitions: FIRST CVSS v4.0 specification.

Exploitation evidence

Disclosed: evidence found.
CVE published 11 Mar 2026
Detectable: no evidence on record.
No public nuclei template indexed
Weaponized: evidence found.
CVSS exploit maturity: proof of concept public
Exploited in the wildExploited: no evidence on record.
Not in CISA KEV and no source reports exploitation
Observed by OffSeq MirageSeen by Mirage: no evidence on record.
No attack traffic recorded by OffSeq Mirage sensors

A missing step is not evidence of safety. Sources: cve.org (opens in a new tab), CVSS vector, the Metasploit, Exploit-DB and nuclei-templates index as of 29 Oct 2026.

Disclosed: The CVE record is public on cve.org. Its publication is t = 0.
Detectable: A public nuclei template can find exposed instances, for defenders and attackers alike.
Weaponized: A Metasploit exploit module or Exploit-DB entry exists (Metasploit scanner modules do not count), or CISA SSVC or the CVSS exploit maturity reports a public proof of concept.
Exploited in the wild: CISA KEV lists it, CISA SSVC rates exploitation active, or a source reports attacks.
Observed by OffSeq Mirage: OffSeq Mirage honeypot sensors recorded attack traffic for this CVE, or found exposed hosts without attack traffic.

Moments are spaced evenly, not to scale; a dashed line marks a gap of six months or more. Deltas count from t = 0. Sources that give only a date (CISA KEV, Exploit-DB, or a time of exactly 00:00Z) read “same day” rather than hours. Metasploit modules carry the flaw’s disclosure date, not their release date, and nuclei templates carry no date, so both appear above but not on the timeline.

What to do

Affected software

Product	Affected	Fixed in
strukturaglibheif	Affected =1.21.0 =1.21.1 =1.21.2	Fixed in–
GitHubstrukturag/libheif`pkg:github/strukturag/libheif`Other threats	Affected =1.21.0 =1.21.1 =1.21.2	Fixed in–

Check your own hosts for these packages with threat-finder (opens in a new tab), our free open-source scanner.

AI-suggested

Organizations should promptly apply the official patch identified by commit b97c8b5f198b27f375127cd597a35f2113544d03 to all affected libheif versions (1.21.0 through 1.21.2). Additionally, limit local access to trusted users only, especially on systems processing HEIF images. Employ strict access controls and user privilege management to reduce the risk of local exploitation. Monitor systems for unusual crashes or memory access errors related to media processing applications. Where possible, use updated versions of libheif beyond 1.21.2 that include the fix. For environments where patching is delayed, consider sandboxing or isolating applications that use libheif to minimize potential impact. Regularly audit software dependencies and maintain an inventory of media libraries to ensure timely updates.

Description

CVE-2026-3949 is a medium-severity vulnerability in strukturag libheif versions up to 1.21.2, specifically in the HEIF file parser component's vvdec_push_data2 function. It allows a local attacker with limited privileges to trigger an out-of-bounds read by manipulating the size argument, potentially leading to information disclosure or application instability. Exploitation requires local access and no user interaction is needed. Although the exploit has been publicly disclosed, no known active exploitation in the wild has been reported. A patch identified by commit b97c8b5f198b27f375127cd597a35f2113544d03 addresses this issue. Organizations using libheif in media processing or image handling should apply the patch promptly to mitigate risks.

Impact

The primary impact of CVE-2026-3949 is an out-of-bounds read that can lead to information disclosure or application crashes. For organizations, this could mean leakage of sensitive memory contents or instability in applications processing HEIF images, potentially disrupting workflows or services that rely on media processing. Since exploitation requires local access, the threat is mainly to environments where untrusted users have some level of system access, such as multi-user systems, shared workstations, or developer environments. The vulnerability could be leveraged as part of a larger attack chain to gather information or cause denial of service. Although the CVSS score is medium (4.8), the risk increases in environments where libheif is widely used and local user access is common. Failure to patch could expose organizations to data leakage or service interruptions, impacting confidentiality and availability.

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Exploitation evidence

What to do

Affected software

Description

AI analysisMachine-generated, updated 18 Mar 2026, 19:28 UTC

Technical details

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