CVEs / CVE-2021-22204
CVE-2021-22204: ExifTool Remote Code Execution Vulnerability
- Known exploited in the CISA KEV catalog since 17 Nov 2021
- high 7.8 CVSS 3.1 (NVD)
- EPSS 99.9% chance of exploitation in the next 30 days, higher than 99% of CVEs (30 Oct 2026)
- Last changed at its sources
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Summary
Improper neutralization of user data in the DjVu file format in Exiftool versions 7.44 and up allows arbitrary code execution when parsing the malicious image
Description
Improper neutralization of user data in the DjVu file format in ExifTool versions 7.44 and up allows arbitrary code execution when parsing the malicious image
Affected and fixed versions
| Product | Affected | Fixed in |
|---|---|---|
| ExifTool ExifTool | >=7.44, <12.24 | — |
Exploitation
| In CISA KEV since | 17 Nov 2021 |
|---|---|
| Due date for US federal agencies | 1 Dec 2021 |
| Used in ransomware campaigns | Unknown |
| Required action | Apply updates per vendor instructions. |
Severity
| CVSS 3.1 | 7.8 highCVSS:3.1/AV:L/AC:L/PR:N/UI:R/S:U/C:H/I:H/A:HScored by NVD |
|---|---|
| Weakness | CWE-94 |
References
- CVE-2021-22204 on NVD
- CVE-2021-22204 in the CISA KEV catalog
- CVE-2021-22204 on OSV
- http://packetstormsecurity.com/files/162558/ExifTool-DjVu-ANT-Perl-Injection.html Exploit, Third Party Advisory, VDB Entry
- http://packetstormsecurity.com/files/164768/GitLab-Unauthenticated-Remote-ExifTool-Command-Injection.html Exploit, Third Party Advisory, VDB Entry
- http://packetstormsecurity.com/files/164994/GitLab-13.10.2-Remote-Code-Execution.html Exploit, Third Party Advisory, VDB Entry
- http://packetstormsecurity.com/files/167038/ExifTool-12.23-Arbitrary-Code-Execution.html Exploit, Third Party Advisory, VDB Entry
- http://www.openwall.com/lists/oss-security/2021/05/09/1 Mailing List, Third Party Advisory
- http://www.openwall.com/lists/oss-security/2021/05/10/5 Mailing List, Third Party Advisory
- https://github.com/exiftool/exiftool/commit/cf0f4e7dcd024ca99615bfd1102a841a25dde031#diff-fa0d652d10dbcd246e6b1df16c1e992931d3bb717a7e36157596b76bdadb3800 Patch
- https://gitlab.com/gitlab-org/cves/-/blob/master/2021/CVE-2021-22204.json Third Party Advisory
- https://hackerone.com/reports/1154542 Exploit, Issue Tracking, Third Party Advisory
- https://lists.debian.org/debian-lts-announce/2021/05/msg00018.html Mailing List, Third Party Advisory
- https://lists.fedoraproject.org/archives/list/package-announce%40lists.fedoraproject.org/message/DDKDLJLBTBBR66OOPXSXCG2PQRM5KCZL/ Release Notes
- https://lists.fedoraproject.org/archives/list/package-announce%40lists.fedoraproject.org/message/F6UOBPU3LSHAPRRJNISNVXZ5DSUIALLV/ Release Notes
- https://lists.fedoraproject.org/archives/list/package-announce%40lists.fedoraproject.org/message/U4RF6PJCJ6NQOVJJJF6HN6BORUQVIXY6/ Release Notes
- https://www.debian.org/security/2021/dsa-4910 Mailing List, Third Party Advisory
- https://www.cisa.gov/known-exploited-vulnerabilities-catalog?field_cve=CVE-2021-22204 US Government Resource
Sources
Exploitation status from the CISA Known Exploited Vulnerabilities catalog. EPSS scores from FIRST. Descriptions, severity and references from the National Vulnerability Database. Open-source package versions from OSV (CC-BY 4.0). Text is shown as each source states it; Stackurity does not edit it. Check the vendor's advisory before acting.
This product uses data from the NVD API but is not endorsed or certified by the NVD.