CVE-2020-17541Public exploitNetwork attack vector

Memory corruption via Huffman encoder buffer overrun

Published Jun 1, 2021 · Updated Aug 4, 2024

Stack buffer overflow in libjpeg-turbo before 2.0.4 allows attackers to overrun memory while losslessly transforming a malformed JPEG. The encode_one_block Huffman routine writes encoded bytes beyond its fixed local buffer when crafted extremely high-frequency coefficients expand unusually. Reachability requires the lossless transformer; the project reports that the overwrite stayed within the stack and produced no crash or visible error.

CVSS severity8.8
High
EPSS probability2.73%
Next 30 days · Sep 16, 2026
Known exploitationUnconfirmed
Based on sourced intelligence
Hinoki checkNot available
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Summary

What happened

Stack buffer overflow in libjpeg-turbo before 2.0.4 allows attackers to overrun memory while losslessly transforming a malformed JPEG. The encode_one_block Huffman routine writes encoded bytes beyond its fixed local buffer when crafted extremely high-frequency coefficients expand unusually. Reachability requires the lossless transformer; the project reports that the overwrite stayed within the stack and produced no crash or visible error.

The record

CVE
CVE-2020-17541
Published
Jun 1, 2021
Updated
Aug 4, 2024
Vendor
Unknown vendor
Product
Unknown product
Classifications
CWE-119, CWE-787
Attack vector
network
Privileges
unauthenticated

Timeline

How it unfolded

  1. Jun 1, 2021CVE publishedPublication date reported by the CVE source.
  2. Aug 4, 2024Record updatedLatest update available in the CVE record.

Exploitability

Present is not the same as exploitable

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Is a vulnerable build present?

Affected buildAffected product and version details are unavailable.

What conditions does exploitation require?

Attack vectornetwork
Required privilegesunauthenticated

What is affected?

Affected products and versions are unavailable in this record.

Published CVSS scores

6.8NIST NVDAV:N/AC:M/Au:N/C:P/I:P/A:P
8.8NIST NVDCVSS:3.1/AV:N/AC:L/PR:N/UI:R/S:U/C:H/I:H/A:H

CVSS describes severity. EPSS estimates exploitation probability.

Attacks

What attackers are doing with it

Daily unique IPs observed by Shadowserver honeypots for known exploited vulnerabilities (KEVs). Missing observations do not establish an absence of attacks.

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No observations available

Sep 9, 2026Sep 15, 2026
Latest reporting daySep 15, 2026
Latest daily unique IPsUnavailable
Prior 30-day averageUnavailable
SourceShadowserver honeypots (KEV)
Vectornetwork
Privilegesunauthenticated
Known exploitationUnconfirmed
Public exploitPublished

Weakness, pattern, technique

CWE-119Improper Restriction of Operations within the Bounds of a Memory Buffer
CWE-787Out-of-bounds Write

Public exploit references

Labels summarize the accepted research assessment. They do not indicate a test against your environment.

Technologies

Your stack

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Your stack

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