CVE-2026-2049VulnerabilityPublished 16 Mar 2026

ZDI-26-214: GIMP HDR File Parsing Heap-based Buffer Overflow Remote Code Execution Vulnerability

Source Zero Day Initiative

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Not known to be exploited.

Data as of 29 Oct 2026, 19:04 UTC

Severity

High

Rated High by Zero Day Initiative · No CVSS score from NVD or the CNA

EPSS: 0.6% chance of exploitation in 30 days – higher than 49% of CVEsExploit Prediction Scoring System: the likelihood attackers will use this flaw soon.

Exploitation evidence

Disclosed: evidence found.
Public on cve.org; its publication date is not in this record
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.

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.

remote

What to do

AI-suggested

GIMP has issued an official update that corrects this vulnerability. Users should apply the update promptly to mitigate the risk. Since the vendor has provided a fix, no additional mitigation steps are necessary beyond applying the official patch.

Description

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 ZDI has assigned a CVSS rating of 7.8. The following CVEs are assigned: CVE-2026-2049.

Impact

Successful exploitation allows remote attackers to execute arbitrary code with the privileges of the user running GIMP. This can lead to full compromise of the affected system. The vulnerability requires user interaction but does not require elevated privileges or complex attack conditions.

Summary

CVE-2026-2049 is a heap-based buffer overflow vulnerability in GIMP's HDR file parser. The flaw occurs due to insufficient validation of the length of user-supplied data before copying it into a heap buffer, allowing an attacker to execute arbitrary code in the context of the current process. Exploitation requires user interaction, such as opening a crafted HDR file. The Zero Day Initiative assigned a CVSS score of 7.8 (AV:L/AC:L/PR:N/UI:R/S:U/C:H/I:H/A:H). GIMP has released an update to fix this vulnerability as documented in their issue tracker.

References

zerodayinitiative.com/advisories/ZDI-26-214/ (opens in a new tab)

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