CVE-2026-96637: Pillow · Decompression bomb check bypass in SpiderImagePlugin.seek() leads to unbounded allocation DoS
Affects aiderSource GCVE Database
Not known to be exploited · CVSS 7.1 High.
Data as of 30 Oct 2026, 07:30 UTC
Thin evidence
One scorer or none| CNA (GitHub_M) | CVSS 4.0 | 7.1 |
|---|
CVSS:4.0/AV:N/AC:L/AT:N/PR:N/UI:P/VC:N/VI:N/VA:H/SC:N/SI:N/SA:NExploitation evidence
Disclosed: evidence found.
CVE published 21 Oct 2026
Detectable: no evidence on record.
No public nuclei template indexed
Weaponized: no evidence on record.
No public exploit code indexed in Metasploit or Exploit-DB
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), the Metasploit, Exploit-DB and nuclei-templates index as of 29 Oct 2026.
What to do
Affected software
| Product | Affected | Fixed in |
|---|---|---|
Homebrewaiderpkg:brew/aiderOther threats | Affected
| Fixed in– |
Check your own hosts for these packages with threat-finder (opens in a new tab), our free open-source scanner.
Description
## Summary SpiderImagePlugin's seek() bypasses the decompression bomb check, allowing a tiny (<1KB) crafted SPIDER stack file to trigger a multi-gigabyte allocation on im.load(). ## Affected versions All versions up to and including current HEAD (v13.0.0.dev0, commit e7a7ea84) ## Root cause Image.open() runs Image._decompression_bomb_check(im.size) exactly once, in _open_core (src/PIL/Image.py:3668), right after the initial _open(). SPIDER stack files are multi-frame: SpiderImageFile.seek(frame) (SpiderImagePlugin.py:179-190) computes an attacker-influenced stkoffset and calls self._open() AGAIN directly (line 190) — NOT through Image.open(). _open() re-parses a fresh 27-float header at that offset and reassigns: self._size = int(h[12]), int(h[2]) # SpiderImagePlugin.py:131 straight from unvalidated header floats (isSpiderHeader only checks internal labrec*lenbyt==labbyt consistency, never bounds nsam/nrow). No bomb check runs on this new size. On the subsequent load(), ImageFile.load_prepare() (ImageFile.py:436-437) executes `self.im = Image.core.new(self.mode, self.size)` with the unchecked, attacker-chosen size. Mode is always "F" (4 bytes/pixel), so e.g. 40000x40000 = 6.4 GB. ## Why this is a real bug Sibling multi-frame plugins DO re-check on their alternate paths: - GifImagePlugin.py:286 - Image._decompression_bomb_check(self._size) (in seek) - TiffImagePlugin.py:1309 - Image._decompression_bomb_check(self._tile_size) - IcnsImagePlugin.py:121/138, IcoImagePlugin.py:236/240 (sub-image selection) SpiderImagePlugin has NO bomb check anywhere. This is the same class of bug just fixed for GdImageFile (GHSA-phj9-mv4w-65pm) and the FontFile classes (GHSA-5x94/8v84/45hq): an allocation reached on a non-Image.open() path sized by an attacker header field, independent of the one-time pixel bomb check. ## Reproduction Python 3.13, Pillow HEAD e7a7ea84 Attached: pillow_poc_spider_bomb.py Sets Image.MAX_IMAGE_PIXELS=5000, then: - CONTROL: Image.open(standalone 100x100 SPIDER) -> DecompressionBombWarning fires correctly. - BYPASS: Image.open(stack, frame0=1x1) passes; im.seek(1) sets size (100,100) with NO DecompressionBombWarning/Error -> the check is bypassed. Real-world impact: a large frame-1 nsam/nrow (e.g. 40000x40000) causes im.load() to allocate ~6.4 GB (mode F) with the bomb check fully bypassed, from a file under 1 KB. ## Suggested fix Call Image._decompression_bomb_check(self.size) at the end of SpiderImageFile._open() (or in seek() after _open()), mirroring GifImagePlugin / TiffImagePlugin. Optionally validate nsam/nrow are positive and sane in _open(). Credit: Yazan Balawneh - CyStack Security Team [pillow_poc_spider_bomb.py](https://github.com/user-attachments/files/30244916/pillow_poc_spider_bomb.py)
References
- github.com/python-pillow/Pillow/security/advisories/GHSA-g842-9rc4-69pw (opens in a new tab)
- nvd.nist.gov/vuln/detail/CVE-2026-96637 (opens in a new tab)
- github.com/python-pillow/Pillow/pull/10076 (opens in a new tab)
- github.com/python-pillow/Pillow/commit/7cb0e02389d8aac2a60896a490f572db0b07b841 (opens in a new tab)
- github.com/python-pillow/Pillow (opens in a new tab)
- github.com/python-pillow/Pillow/releases/tag/13.0.0 (opens in a new tab)