Security readout for executives and security teams
Plain-English summary
DCMTK through 3.6.6 can crash when its dcmqrdb component handles certain requests and copies a null database result. The business impact is availability: an unauthenticated network attacker may be able to disrupt affected services. The provided sources do not show confirmed active exploitation.
Executive priority
Prioritize remediation for healthcare, imaging, or operational environments where DCMTK availability affects clinical or business workflows. Internet-facing or broadly reachable dcmqrdb services should be handled first.
Technical view
The issue is in dcmqrdb string-copy handling after a database query returns a null result. The CVE maps this to CWE-476 and CVSS 3.1 score 7.5, with network attack vector, no privileges, no user interaction, and high availability impact only.
Likely exposure
Exposure is most likely where DCMTK through 3.6.6 is deployed with dcmqrdb reachable on a network. The bundle does not identify specific vendors, packaged products, or CPEs, so asset discovery should focus on direct DCMTK and distro packages.
Exploitation context
The CVSS vector indicates remote unauthenticated denial of service is plausible. CISA KEV status is false in the bundle, and no cited source confirms exploitation in the wild. Treat exploit status as unconfirmed, not absent.
Researcher notes
Evidence supports a network-triggerable availability flaw, but the bundle lacks affected CPEs, detailed product mappings, exploit telemetry, and complete fixed-version metadata. Validate against upstream DCMTK history and distro advisories before broad claims.
Mitigation direction
- Upgrade DCMTK or distro packages using vendor security guidance.
- Apply Debian LTS dcmtk updates where applicable.
- Review the referenced upstream commit for fixed-version mapping.
- Limit dcmqrdb network reachability to trusted systems.
- Monitor affected services for crashes or unexpected restarts.
Validation and detection
- Inventory DCMTK installations and versions through 3.6.6.
- Identify systems running or exposing dcmqrdb.
- Confirm installed packages include the upstream or Debian security fix.
- Review service logs for dcmqrdb crashes around remote requests.
- Verify network controls restrict access to intended clients.
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-476: 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 lookupDatabase behavior lookup
The CVE wording references database injection or access, so collection and exfiltration review may help. This is a Glexia inferred lookup path, not an official MITRE, ATT&CK, or CVE Program mapping.
Open ATT&CK lookupCVE-2021-41689 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
- High
- CVSS
- 7.5 (3.1)
- Known Exploited
- No
- Published
Vector: CVSS:3.1/AV:N/AC:L/PR:N/UI:N/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:N/AC:L/PR:N/UI:N/S:U/C:N/I:N/A:H3.93.6Primary CVE scoreVulnerability scoring details
Base CVSS 3.1 score
7.5HighVector: CVSS:3.1/AV:N/AC:L/PR:N/UI:N/S:U/C:N/I:N/A:H
Source materials
- CVE List V5 sourceCVE List V5
- https://github.com/DCMTK/dcmtkCVE reference
- https://github.com/DCMTK/dcmtk/commit/5c14bf53fb42ceca12bbcc0016e8704b1580920dCVE reference
- [debian-lts-announce] 20240628 [SECURITY] [DLA 3847-1] dcmtk security updateCVE reference · mailing-list
- https://lists.debian.org/debian-lts-announce/2025/01/msg00032.htmlCVE reference
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.