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NVD / CVE Program· CNA GitHub_M

CVE-2026-96639: Pillow multi-frame loaders can reuse stale native image storage after mode transitions

CriticalCVSS 9.8 · v3.1—No exploit Fix available

Noroxi assessment

Priority: Monitor (action score 39/100)

  • The sources we track (CISA KEV, Exploit-DB, Metasploit, Nuclei, GitHub) show no public exploit code or exploitation in the wild.
  • Probability of exploitation in the next 30 days: 0.65% (FIRST EPSS); higher than 52% of all records.
  • Anyone who can reach it over the internet can trigger it. No account or password is required. No user action is required. No special conditions are required; it is repeatable.
  • According to CISA the attack is automatable: targets can be found by mass scanning.
  • Fixed version: python-pillow Pillow 13.0.0.

Low priority for now. Upgrade to python-pillow Pillow 13.0.0 or later.

Generated automatically from the record's data: CVSS (NVD and CNA), CISA KEV and SSVC, FIRST EPSS, exploit sources, fixed versions. How we calculate it

Primary sources: NVD · CVE.org · FIRST EPSS

Pillow is a Python imaging library. From 11.0.0 until 13.0.0, multi-frame loaders can retain an ImagingCore allocation created for a narrow frame mode while a later frame of the same dimensions changes the logical mode and decoder tiles to wider RGB or CMYK data. ImageFile.load_prepare() reuses the stale native storage because _im is non-null without verifying that its mode and size still match. Crafted PSD, MPO, DCX, or MIC frame transitions can then write wider pixels into the narrow allocation, causing native out-of-bounds writes and crashes. The MPO path can also cause a native over-read and, in demonstrated runtime-specific profiles, command execution. This issue is fixed in version 13.0.0.

Published
Oct 21, 2026
Updated
Oct 29, 2026
EPSS
0.6% · 52th percentile

Report tools

JSON

Action score

39

Monitor

Low priority for now.

CVSS
39 / 40 · 9.8 / 10
CISA KEV
0 / 30 · Not listed
EPSS
0 / 30 · 0.6%

CISA SSVC decision

Exploitation
none
Automatable
yes
Technical impact
total

Vulnrichment: CISA's decision-tree inputs.

CNA vs NVD score

NVD
—
CNA · GitHub_M
9.8
NVD has not scored this yet; the score shown is the CNA’s.

The score given by the assigning authority versus NVD’s independent score. A gap means the severity is contested.

Get told when this record changes

  • Not in KEV: no record of exploitation in the wild
  • No public exploit code on record
  • A fix has been released

If any of these changes, we'll tell you in the daily email digest.

Follow CVE-2026-96639

When you'll hear from us

  • when it enters CISA KEV
  • when exploit code appears or is weaponized
  • when the record is updated (including a fixed version)
  • when EPSS rises 20 points in a week

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Noroxi analysis

What does it mean in your environment?

The assessment above is generated automatically from the record's data; it doesn't know your environment. Our team verifies on your systems whether this vulnerability is actually exploitable and which mitigation is enough.

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Affected systems

Is your version affected?

Pick the product and type the version you run. It's compared with this record's version ranges in your browser; the version isn't sent anywhere.

VendorProduct
pythonpillow

Versions reported by the vendor

Affected version ranges reported by the assigning authority (GitHub_M). Independent of NVD's CPE analysis and usually ahead of it.

  • python-pillow Pillow

    • >= 11.0.0, < 13.0.0affected

Affected versions

NVD version ranges (for catalog products). Add the product to your stack with a version and matching uses these.

  • python pillow11.0.0 and later · before 13.0.0

Package-level exposure

OSV and GitHub Advisory data: ecosystem, package and range. SBOM matching uses this table.

EcosystemPackageAffected rangeFix
Debian:12pillowfrom 0—
PyPIpillowfrom 11.0.0 · before 13.0.013.0.0

Same product

python: all records

Other highest-scoring records for the same primary product.

  • CVE-2014-3007Python Image Library (PIL) 1.1.7 and earlier and Pillow 2.3 might allow remote attackers to execute arbitrary commands via shell…
    43Plan
  • CVE-2016-4009Integer overflow in the ImagingResampleHorizontal function in libImaging/Resample.c in Pillow before 3.1.1 allows remote attackers to have…
    41Plan
  • CVE-2022-30595libImaging/TgaRleDecode.c in Pillow 9.1.0 has a heap buffer overflow in the processing of invalid TGA image files.
    40Plan

Published before and after this one in the same product

  • ← EarlierCVE-2026-96637Oct 21, 2026 · Pillow: Decompression bomb check bypass in SpiderImagePlugin.seek() leads to unbounded allocation DoS
    28Monitor
  • ← EarlierCVE-2026-96638Oct 21, 2026 · Pillow: BMP RLE decoder memory-amplification DoS via unbounded delta escape / absolute mode
    26Monitor
  • Later →CVE-2026-96640Oct 21, 2026 · Pillow PDF append accepts malformed shared page-tree DAG causing resource exhaustion
    32Monitor

Remediation

Which version to upgrade to

Fix versions compiled from the vendor, package registries and Microsoft. Verify the vendor's note before upgrading.

Product / packageFixed versionSource
python-pillow Pillow13.0.0 · descriptionVendor (CNA)
PyPI:pillow13.0.0Package registry (OSV)

Exploit status

No known public exploit

No public exploit has been observed yet. That doesn't mean you're safe, only that the bar is a little higher.

Research context

For pentesters and researchers: attack profile, score disagreement, timeline, patch commits, credits, variant and chain candidates, bug bounty scope. All derived from existing data; no exploit code.

Timeline

From publication to today: proof of concept, Metasploit module, CISA KEV and fix record. Dates are as reported by the sources.

  1. Published
  2. Fix recordedsame day
  3. TodayNov 13, 2026+22 d
EPSS, last 120 days

FIRST EPSS daily score; only changes of 0.01 or more are recorded (step chart).

Patch and commit links

Commit, PR and diff links among the references. A starting point for patch-diffing and variant hunting; fixes, not exploits.

Variant candidates

Same product, same weakness class, within 18 months. If the patch missed the root cause, the sibling bug is here.

  • CVE-2026-1128962 days apartPillow: TIFF encoder ColorMap plane-size mismatch causes a heap out-of-bounds read
    35Monitor
  • CVE-2026-5405899 days apartPillow: Out-of-bounds read via attacker-controlled row stride on Pillow's mmap path (McIdas AREA files)
    33Monitor
  • CVE-2026-5919899 days apartPillow TGA RLE encoder can serialize up to ~57 KB of adjacent heap data into generated images
    30Monitor
  • CVE-2026-966440 days apartPillow: Heap over-read in WMF/EMF rendering via 16-bit dimension truncation (Windows builds)
    28Monitor

Not on record for this CVE: researcher credit · public bounty program.

Technical details

Attack conditions

  • Anyone who can reach it over the internet can trigger it.
  • No account or password is required.
  • No user action is required.
  • No special conditions are required; it is repeatable.

If successful

Confidentiality
high · data can be read
Integrity
high · data or configuration can be modified
Availability
high · the service can be disrupted
Attack vector
Network
Attack complexity
Low
Privileges required
None
User interaction
None
Scope
Unchanged
Confidentiality impact
High
Integrity impact
High
Availability impact
High

Weakness class (CWE)

CWE-125 · Out-of-bounds Read

CVSS vector

CVSS:3.1/AV:N/AC:L/PR:N/UI:N/S:U/C:H/I:H/A:H

nvd-secondary

Attack context

MITRE CAPEC attack patterns and ATT&CK techniques for this weakness class (CWE). A starting point for detection rules and threat hunting.

ATT&CK techniques

—

Change log

  1. SSVC exploitation— → none
  2. Fix✗ → ✓
  3. Exploit maturity— → none

For records you follow, these changes also arrive as notifications. →

References

Show all references (3 more)

Vendor advisories and official records. Exploit/PoC links are deliberately left out.

All records