Security readout for executives and security teams
Plain-English summary
Pillow versions before 8.2.0 can be forced into a denial-of-service condition when opening a malformed PSD image. The issue affects availability, not confidentiality or integrity, based on the provided sources. Systems that process user-supplied PSD files are the main concern.
Executive priority
Treat this as a moderate availability risk. Prioritize internet-facing or customer-facing image processing workflows first, then internal batch systems that handle PSD files.
Technical view
PSDImagePlugin.PsdImageFile lacked a sanity check comparing the number of PSD layers with the data block size. In vulnerable Pillow releases, Image.open could consume excessive resources before Image.load, leading to denial of service.
Likely exposure
Exposure is most likely in applications, APIs, or batch jobs using Pillow before 8.2.0 to inspect or open PSD files, especially where external users can upload images.
Exploitation context
The source bundle does not show active exploitation, and KEV is false. Exploitation would require the vulnerable application to open a specially malformed PSD file with Pillow.
Researcher notes
Evidence is clear for a Pillow PSD parser denial-of-service fixed in 8.2.0. The bundle lacks CVSS, CWE, detailed affected CPEs, and proof of real-world exploitation.
Mitigation direction
- Upgrade Pillow to 8.2.0 or later.
- Apply downstream Fedora, Gentoo, or vendor package updates where relevant.
- Identify services that accept PSD uploads or ingest external image files.
- Until updated, limit untrusted PSD processing where operationally feasible.
- Review vendor advisories for environment-specific package guidance.
Validation and detection
- Inventory installed Pillow versions across applications and containers.
- Confirm Pillow reports version 8.2.0 or later.
- Review upload and processing paths for PSD file handling.
- Check dependency scanners for CVE-2021-28675 findings.
- Verify patched package versions in Linux distribution advisories.
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.
CVE-2021-28675 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://pillow.readthedocs.io/en/stable/releasenotes/8.2.0.html#cve-2021-28675-fix-dos-in-psdimagepluginCVE reference · x_refsource_MISC
- FEDORA-2021-77756994baCVE reference · vendor-advisory, x_refsource_FEDORA
- GLSA-202107-33CVE reference · vendor-advisory, x_refsource_GENTOO
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.