Application crash via unchecked VVC NAL length
Published Mar 11, 2026 · Updated Mar 11, 2026
Out-of-bounds read in libheif 1.21.0 through 1.21.2 allows local users to crash VVC-enabled image-processing applications. vvdec_push_data2 reads a four-byte NAL size from frame data, then copies that declared number of bytes without checking it against the remaining frame size. Reachability requires a build with the optional vvdec VVC decoder and processing a crafted HEIF file; the demonstrated result is an application crash.
Summary
What happened
Out-of-bounds read in libheif 1.21.0 through 1.21.2 allows local users to crash VVC-enabled image-processing applications. vvdec_push_data2 reads a four-byte NAL size from frame data, then copies that declared number of bytes without checking it against the remaining frame size. Reachability requires a build with the optional vvdec VVC decoder and processing a crafted HEIF file; the demonstrated result is an application crash.
The record
- CVE
- CVE-2026-3949
- Published
- Mar 11, 2026
- Updated
- Mar 11, 2026
- Vendor
- Struktur AG
- Product
- libheif
- Classifications
- CWE-125, CWE-119
- Attack vector
- local
- Privileges
- authenticated
Timeline
How it unfolded
- Mar 11, 2026CVE publishedPublication date reported by the CVE source.
- Mar 11, 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=1.21.0
- Affected versionversion=1.21.1
- Affected versionversion=1.21.2
What conditions does exploitation require?
What is affected?
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
- poc_vvdec_oob_read.heif reproducerproof of concept · demonstrated
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Technologies
Your stack
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Your stack
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