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CVE Record

CVE-2021-38094: Integer Overflow vulnerability in function filter_sobel in libavfilter/vf_convolution.c in Ffmpeg 4.2.1, al...

Integer Overflow vulnerability in function filter_sobel in libavfilter/vf_convolution.c in Ffmpeg 4.2.1, allows attackers to cause a Denial of Service or other unspecified impacts.

UnknownCVSS not scoredNot KEV-listedUpdated
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Glexia's TakeAutomated analysisunknown

Security readout for executives and security teams

Plain-English summary

CVE-2021-38094 is an integer overflow in FFmpeg 4.2.1 that can cause denial of service or other unspecified impact. Business risk is highest where FFmpeg processes files from users, customers, or external partners. The public record does not provide a CVSS score, confirmed exploitation, or a complete affected-version range.

Executive priority

Prioritize as an exposure-management item for media-processing systems, not as a confirmed active-exploitation emergency. Patch or replace vulnerable FFmpeg deployments where untrusted media is processed, and accept lower urgency only after inventory confirms no exposure.

Technical view

The CVE names function filter_sobel in libavfilter/vf_convolution.c in FFmpeg 4.2.1. The issue is described as integer overflow with denial-of-service or unspecified impact. Public references include an FFmpeg Trac ticket and an upstream commit, but the source bundle does not include exploit details or a complete version matrix.

Likely exposure

Exposure is most likely in services that use FFmpeg 4.2.1 to process untrusted media. The bundle does not identify downstream products, distributions, or all affected FFmpeg versions, so inventory must verify local package and embedded library versions.

Exploitation context

The source bundle does not show CISA KEV listing or any cited evidence of active exploitation. The described impact is denial of service or unspecified impact from a media-processing bug, so internet-facing upload and conversion workflows deserve attention.

Researcher notes

Evidence is sparse: no CVSS, CWE, CPE, or affected-version range is included in the bundle. The most defensible validation path is code/package provenance against the FFmpeg ticket and commit, plus runtime inventory of workloads handling untrusted media.

Mitigation direction

  • Identify all FFmpeg binaries and embedded FFmpeg libraries in production and build images.
  • Check vendor advisories or package changelogs for the fix containing the referenced upstream commit.
  • Upgrade affected FFmpeg installations using trusted vendor packages or upstream-supported releases.
  • Reduce processing of untrusted media where vulnerable FFmpeg cannot be updated promptly.

Validation and detection

  • Confirm whether FFmpeg 4.2.1 is present in hosts, containers, appliances, or bundled applications.
  • Review services that pass user-supplied media into FFmpeg filter processing.
  • Verify patched systems include the upstream fix referenced by commit 99f8d32129dd233d4eb2efa44678a0bc44869f23.
  • Monitor media-processing services for crashes or abnormal resource failures after remediation.
Prepared
Confidence
medium
Sources
4

Public sources used

Generated from the cited source records. This long-tail analysis has not been individually reviewed by a named human.

Potential ATT&CK relevance

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

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CVE-2021-38094 mapping review

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Vulnerability profileCVE Program record
Severity
Unknown
CVSS
Not scored
Known Exploited
No
Published
Official CVE source material

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.

0CVSS vectors
0Timeline events
0ADP providers
3Source links

CVSS and timeline data

No CVSS vectors or timeline events were available in the normalized CVE source material.

Source materials

Affected products

Products and packages named in the record

VendorProductVersion / packageStatus
n/an/an/aListed
Weakness

CWE details

No CWE listed

CWE links open Glexia weakness intelligence pages with official CWE context, developer remediation guidance, and related CVE mappings.