CVE-2026-2049: gimp Heap-based Buffer Overflow

Vulnerability summary

CVE-2026-2049 is a high (CVSS 7.8) Heap-based Buffer Overflow vulnerability in gimp. EPSS estimates a 0.61% chance of exploitation in the next 30 days, higher than 48.4% of scored vulnerabilities.

Timeline

1. 10-06-2026
   PublishedVulnerability first disclosed.
2. 15-07-2026
   Last modifiedVulnerability information updated.

Description

GIMP HDR 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 HDR 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-28618.

• CWE-122Heap-based Buffer OverflowA heap overflow condition is a buffer overflow, where the buffer that can be overwritten is allocated in the heap portion of memory, generally meaning that the buffer was allocated using a routine such as malloc().
• CWE-131Incorrect Calculation of Buffer SizeThe product does not correctly calculate the size to be used when allocating a buffer, which could lead to a buffer overflow.