Security readout for executives and security teams
Plain-English summary
CVE-2021-37615 can crash Exiv2 when it prints interpreted metadata from a malicious image. The business impact is denial of service, not data theft or code execution based on the provided sources. Exposure is narrower because a user or workflow must process an attacker-controlled image with the translated metadata print option enabled.
Executive priority
Treat this as a moderate availability risk. Patch during normal vulnerability remediation, faster for internet-facing or high-volume image-processing workflows. It is not supported by the provided evidence as an active exploitation or data compromise issue.
Technical view
Exiv2 v0.27.4 and earlier contain a null pointer dereference in Exiv2::Internal::resolveLens0x319. The fault is triggered while printing interpreted metadata using translated output options such as "-p t" or "-P t". CVSS 3.1 is 4.7 with high availability impact and no confidentiality or integrity impact.
Likely exposure
Systems are mainly exposed where Exiv2 or linked applications process untrusted image files and request interpreted metadata output. Automated image ingestion, forensic, DAM, CMS, or media-processing workflows should check whether Exiv2 is embedded or invoked with translated metadata printing.
Exploitation context
The source bundle does not show KEV listing or active exploitation. Exploitation requires attacker influence over an image file and user-assisted or local processing with a less common output mode. Evidence supports denial of service only.
Researcher notes
Key constraints are important: affected versions are v0.27.4 and earlier, trigger path is interpreted metadata printing, and the impact is a null pointer dereference. The sources do not provide evidence of remote code execution, credential exposure, or active exploitation.
Mitigation direction
- Upgrade Exiv2 to v0.27.5 or a distributor-fixed package.
- Apply Fedora, Gentoo, or other vendor security updates where applicable.
- Disable translated metadata printing for untrusted files until patched.
- Check vendor guidance for linked applications bundling Exiv2.
- Prioritize workflows that process externally supplied images.
Validation and detection
- Inventory Exiv2 versions on servers, workstations, containers, and build images.
- Identify applications or scripts linking to libexiv2.
- Review image-processing jobs for translated metadata print usage.
- Confirm patched packages report versions newer than 0.27.4.
- Verify distro advisories are applied on managed Linux hosts.
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
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ATT&CK lookup starting points
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Open ATT&CK lookupCVE-2021-37615 mapping review
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Open ATT&CK lookup- Severity
- Medium
- CVSS
- 4.7 (3.1)
- Known Exploited
- No
- Published
Vector: CVSS:3.1/AV:L/AC:H/PR:N/UI:R/S:U/C:N/I:N/A:H
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 vector scores
1 official scoreWe collect every scored CVSS vector available in the official CNA and ADP containers. When more than one version is present, the table keeps the source vectors side by side instead of collapsing them into the highest score.
CVSS:3.1/AV:L/AC:H/PR:N/UI:R/S:U/C:N/I:N/A:H13.6Primary CVE scoreVulnerability scoring details
Base CVSS 3.1 score
4.7MediumVector: CVSS:3.1/AV:L/AC:H/PR:N/UI:R/S:U/C:N/I:N/A:H
Source materials
- CVE List V5 sourceCVE List V5
- https://github.com/Exiv2/exiv2/pull/1758CVE reference
- https://github.com/Exiv2/exiv2/security/advisories/GHSA-h9x9-4f77-336wCVE reference
- FEDORA-2021-399f869889CVE reference · vendor-advisory
- FEDORA-2021-cbaef8e2d5CVE reference · vendor-advisory
- GLSA-202312-06CVE reference · vendor-advisory
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.
NULL Pointer Dereference
NULL Pointer Dereference represents a recurring weakness pattern that can create exploitable paths when design, validation, or implementation controls are missing.