Security readout for executives and security teams
Plain-English summary
CVE-2020-35535 is a LibRaw file-parsing bug. A specially crafted Sony SRF raw image can cause LibRaw to read outside expected memory while parsing metadata. Business impact depends on whether your systems process untrusted raw image files.
Executive priority
Treat this as a targeted dependency update for image-processing environments, not a broad emergency. Prioritize quickly if the organization accepts raw image uploads, performs media conversion, or processes external SRF files automatically.
Technical view
The issue is a CWE-125 out-of-bounds read in LibRaw::parseSonySRF() in libraw/src/metadata/sony.cpp when processing SRF files. The source bundle lists LibRaw 0.21-Beta1 and 0.20.0 through 0.20.2, including 0.20-RC2, as affected. A LibRaw commit is referenced as the fix source.
Likely exposure
Exposure is most likely in applications, pipelines, or services that embed LibRaw and parse user-supplied or external Sony SRF/raw image files. Systems that do not process SRF files or do not use the listed LibRaw versions have lower apparent exposure.
Exploitation context
The provided sources do not show active exploitation, and the CVE is not listed as KEV. Evidence supports a malformed-file parsing condition, but no exploit maturity, public weaponization, CVSS score, or real-world targeting is provided in the bundle.
Researcher notes
Source evidence is limited to the CVE description, affected versions, a GitHub issue, and a fixing commit. No CVSS vector, fixed release number, exploit status, or detailed impact beyond out-of-bounds read is included. Validate exposure through dependency and file-ingestion paths.
Mitigation direction
- Inventory applications and packages that include LibRaw.
- Update LibRaw to a release or package containing commit c243f4539233053466c1309bde606815351bee81.
- If immediate update is unavailable, restrict untrusted SRF file processing.
- Check LibRaw and distribution vendor guidance for fixed package versions.
- Prioritize internet-facing or automated file ingestion systems first.
Validation and detection
- Check SBOMs and dependency manifests for affected LibRaw versions.
- Confirm the deployed source or package includes the referenced fix commit.
- Identify services that parse Sony SRF or raw image files.
- Review crash reports or parser failures involving SRF inputs.
- Run regression tests around raw image ingestion after updating.
Public sources used
Generated from the cited source records. This long-tail analysis has not been individually reviewed by a named human.
Conservative CVE-to-ATT&CK context
These mappings and lookup hints may be relevant to the vulnerability behavior, CWE, affected product, or exposure path. Glexia-inferred context is not an official MITRE, ATT&CK, CWE, or CVE Program mapping.
ATT&CK lookup starting points
Use these exact CWE pages and searches to review the Glexia ATT&CK library from this CVE's weakness and description context.
CWE-125: Exact CWE lookup
Use the exact CWE identifier as the starting point before reviewing related ATT&CK behavior. Open the exact CWE lookup page first, then review the ATT&CK searches from that MITRE weakness context. This is a Glexia lookup hint, not an official ATT&CK mapping.
Open ATT&CK lookupCVE-2020-35535 mapping review
Open the CVE-to-ATT&CK bridge for reviewed, inferred, or future official mappings tied to this CVE.
Open ATT&CK lookup- Severity
- Unknown
- CVSS
- Not scored
- Known Exploited
- No
- Published
CNA and ADP enrichment extracted from CVE v5
These fields come from the CVE record and ADP containers, not from Glexia's Take. They preserve time-varying source decisions such as CISA SSVC, KEV status, CVSS metrics, and provider references.
CVSS and timeline data
No CVSS vectors or timeline events were available in the normalized CVE source material.
Source materials
- CVE List V5 sourceCVE List V5
- https://github.com/LibRaw/LibRaw/issues/283CVE reference · x_refsource_MISC
- https://github.com/LibRaw/LibRaw/commit/c243f4539233053466c1309bde606815351bee81CVE reference · x_refsource_MISC
Products and packages named in the record
CWE details
CWE links open Glexia weakness intelligence pages with official CWE context, developer remediation guidance, and related CVE mappings.
Out-of-bounds Read
Out-of-bounds Read represents a recurring weakness pattern that can create exploitable paths when design, validation, or implementation controls are missing.