Application crash via recursive FITS header parsing
Published Sep 18, 2026 · Updated Sep 18, 2026
Uncontrolled recursion in affected OpenImageIO releases allows attackers to crash applications that open a crafted FITS file. FitsInput::read_fits_header() reads successive 2,880-byte header blocks and calls itself again whenever a block omits the mandatory END keyword, without limiting recursion depth. Exploitation requires an application or user to open attacker-supplied FITS content; repeated calls exhaust the process stack and terminate that application without reported data disclosure or modification.
Summary
What happened
Uncontrolled recursion in affected OpenImageIO releases allows attackers to crash applications that open a crafted FITS file. FitsInput::read_fits_header() reads successive 2,880-byte header blocks and calls itself again whenever a block omits the mandatory END keyword, without limiting recursion depth. Exploitation requires an application or user to open attacker-supplied FITS content; repeated calls exhaust the process stack and terminate that application without reported data disclosure or modification.
The record
- CVE
- CVE-2026-59156
- Published
- Sep 18, 2026
- Updated
- Sep 18, 2026
- Vendor
- Academy Software Foundation
- Product
- OpenImageIO
- Classifications
- CWE-674, T1499
- Attack vector
- network
- Privileges
- unauthenticated
Timeline
How it unfolded
- Sep 18, 2026CVE publishedPublication date reported by the CVE source.
- Sep 18, 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=< 3.0.20.0
- Affected versionversion=>= 3.1.0.0, < 3.1.15.0
- Affected versionversion=>= 3.2.0.0-dev, < 3.2.0.3-beta1
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.
Activity data is delayed. The latest report is Sep 28, 2026.
Public exploit references
- Crafted FITS recursion proof of conceptproof of concept · demonstrated
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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