Process crash via recursive MSL writes
Published Jan 20, 2026 · Updated Jan 20, 2026
Stack exhaustion in ImageMagick before 7.1.2-13 allows local users to crash an image-processing process with a recursive MSL file. The MSLStartElement write handler passes an MSL-prefixed output to WriteImage, which re-enters WriteMSLImage and ProcessMSLScript without detecting direct or indirect cycles. Exploitation requires libxml2-backed MSL parsing and control of an MSL script processed by the target; the demonstrated consequence is a process crash, not data disclosure or modification.
Summary
What happened
Stack exhaustion in ImageMagick before 7.1.2-13 allows local users to crash an image-processing process with a recursive MSL file. The MSLStartElement write handler passes an MSL-prefixed output to WriteImage, which re-enters WriteMSLImage and ProcessMSLScript without detecting direct or indirect cycles. Exploitation requires libxml2-backed MSL parsing and control of an MSL script processed by the target; the demonstrated consequence is a process crash, not data disclosure or modification.
The record
- CVE
- CVE-2026-23874
- Published
- Jan 20, 2026
- Updated
- Jan 20, 2026
- Vendor
- ImageMagick Studio LLC
- Product
- ImageMagick
- Classifications
- CWE-835, T1499.004
- Attack vector
- local
- Privileges
- authenticated
Timeline
How it unfolded
- Jan 20, 2026CVE publishedPublication date reported by the CVE source.
- Jan 20, 2026Record updatedLatest update available in the CVE record.
Exploitability
Present is not the same as exploitable
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Is a vulnerable build present?
Compare these published version ranges with your installed build and any vendor patches.
- Affected versionversion=< 7.1.2-13
What conditions does exploitation require?
What is affected?
Published CVSS scores
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.
Weakness, pattern, technique
Public exploit references
- Recursive MSL crash reproductionproof of concept · demonstrated
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Technologies
Your stack
See the directory against your own environment.
Your stack
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