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The vulnerability, identified as CVE-2026-30929, resides in the `MagnifyImage` function within ImageMagick, a popular open-source software suite for image manipulation. The core issue is a stack-based buffer overflow (CWE-121) . The `MagnifyImage` function uses a fixed-size buffer allocated on the stack to process image data during a magnification operation. When a specifically crafted and malformed image file is provided as input, the function attempts to write more data into this stack buffer than it can hold. This uncontrolled write operation overflows the buffer, corrupting adjacent memory on the stack, including critical data like return addresses and local variables. This memory corruption can lead to a program crash (denial of service) or, if successfully exploited, allow an attacker to overwrite the return address and redirect program execution flow. This could potentially enable the execution of arbitrary code with the privileges of the user running ImageMagick . The vulnerability affects ImageMagick versions prior to 6.9.13-41 and 7.1.2-16 .
DailyCVE Form:
Platform: ImageMagick
Version: <6.9.13-41, <7.1.2-16
Vulnerability :Stack Buffer Overflow
Severity: High (CVSS 7.7)
Date: March 9, 2026
Prediction: Patched (March 12, 2026)
What Undercode Say:
Analysis
The exploitation of CVE-2026-30929 relies on supplying a malicious image to the `MagnifyImage` function. The overflow occurs because the function lacks proper bounds checking when copying data into the stack buffer. While the official description points to MagnifyImage, related filename-handling vulnerabilities (like CVE-2025-53101) provide insight into similar memory corruption mechanics in the software . Red Hat notes that while the vulnerability can lead to arbitrary code execution, features like SELinux and ASLR increase the difficulty of such exploits, potentially limiting the impact to a denial of service in some environments . The vulnerability is fixed in the patched versions listed.
Bash Commands and Code
Check your installed ImageMagick version:
identify -version
Example of building a vulnerable version (for testing in a sandbox):
git clone --depth 1 --branch 7.1.1-47 https://github.com/ImageMagick/ImageMagick.git ImageMagick-Vuln cd ImageMagick-Vuln ./configure --enable-maintainer-mode make
Note: This checks out an older version potentially vulnerable to similar classes of bugs, not specifically CVE-2026-30929, for educational purposes.
Exploit
A successful exploit would involve crafting an image file that, when processed by a vulnerable version of ImageMagick (specifically the `MagnifyImage` routine), triggers the overflow. The attacker would need to convince a user or an automated system to process this malicious image using a vulnerable command or application that calls the affected function. The exact structure of the malicious image data is designed to overwrite the stack return address with a pointer to attacker-controlled shellcode, potentially embedded elsewhere in the image.
Protection from this CVE
- Patch Immediately: Update ImageMagick to version 6.9.13-41, 7.1.2-16, or any later patched version .
On Debian/Ubuntu: `sudo apt-get update && sudo apt-get install imagemagick`
On RHEL/CentOS: `sudo yum update ImageMagick`
2. Mitigation (if patching is delayed):
Avoid processing untrusted or unsolicited image files.
Implement input validation and sanitization for all image uploads.
Run applications that use ImageMagick to process external images within a sandboxed or containerized environment with restricted privileges to limit the impact of a potential compromise .
Impact
A successful exploit of this stack buffer overflow can lead to:
Denial of Service: Crashing the application or system service using ImageMagick.
Arbitrary Code Execution: In scenarios where memory protections are less robust or can be bypassed, an attacker could execute malicious code. This could allow for unauthorized file access, installation of malware, or further compromise of the host system. The integrity and availability impacts are rated as HIGH .
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Sources:
Reported By: github.com
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