Security readout for executives and security teams
Plain-English summary
Open Babel can be crashed or potentially taken over when it processes a malformed ORCA-format chemistry file. The issue is a memory write outside the intended buffer. Organizations are mainly exposed where Open Babel parses files from users, partners, pipelines, or automated ingestion systems.
Executive priority
Treat as high-priority where Open Babel processes external files. The business risk is remote compromise of file-processing systems, especially scientific portals or automated conversion services.
Technical view
CVE-2022-46290 is a CWE-122 out-of-bounds write in Open Babel's ORCA nAtoms coordinate handling. The coordinate storage loop does not check its index against nAtoms. Sources list Open Babel 3.1.1 and master commit 530dbfa3 as affected, with possible arbitrary code execution from a specially crafted malformed file.
Likely exposure
Highest exposure is in web services, research portals, conversion workers, CI pipelines, or desktop workflows that accept untrusted ORCA files and process them with Open Babel.
Exploitation context
The bundle does not cite CISA KEV listing or confirmed active exploitation. Exploitation requires providing a malicious file to a vulnerable Open Babel parser; the impact can include code execution under the parser process.
Researcher notes
The strongest evidence is Talos' report and CVE metadata. The source bundle does not provide a named fixed version, patch commit, public exploit status, or real-world exploitation evidence.
Mitigation direction
- Inventory all Open Babel installations and bundled library dependencies.
- Check Open Babel and Talos guidance for a fixed release or patch.
- Upgrade or patch affected Open Babel 3.1.1 and commit 530dbfa3 builds.
- Restrict ORCA parsing for untrusted files until remediation is complete.
- Run file-conversion workloads with least privilege and isolation.
Validation and detection
- Confirm deployed Open Babel versions across hosts, containers, and applications.
- Identify applications that parse ORCA files or call Open Babel automatically.
- Verify patched versions are running after remediation.
- Review ingestion paths for untrusted chemistry files.
- Monitor parser crashes or abnormal worker behavior.
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-122: Exact CWE lookup
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Open ATT&CK lookupExecution behavior lookup
The CVE wording references code or command execution, so execution technique review may help defensive triage. This is a Glexia inferred lookup path, not an official MITRE, ATT&CK, or CVE Program mapping.
Open ATT&CK lookupCVE-2022-46290 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
- Critical
- CVSS
- 9.8 (3.1)
- Known Exploited
- No
- Published
Vector: CVSS:3.1/AV:N/AC:L/PR:N/UI:N/S:U/C:H/I:H/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:H/I:H/A:H3.95.9Primary CVE scoreVulnerability scoring details
Base CVSS 3.1 score
9.8CriticalVector: CVSS:3.1/AV:N/AC:L/PR:N/UI:N/S:U/C:H/I:H/A:H
Source materials
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.
Heap-based Buffer Overflow
Heap-based Buffer Overflow represents a recurring weakness pattern that can create exploitable paths when design, validation, or implementation controls are missing.