Executive brief
ImageMagick is a widely used software suite for displaying, converting, and editing image files. A flaw in how it handles specific image processing tasks (the ASHLAR coder) can cause the software to consume excessive memory if a task fails. An attacker could use this to crash the application or slow down the system, potentially disrupting services that rely on ImageMagick for automated image processing.
Technical details
A memory leak vulnerability (CWE-401) exists in ImageMagick's ASHLAR coder component. The issue occurs when a temporary image is not properly released following a failed action during processing. An attacker can exploit this by providing specially crafted input that triggers these failures, leading to memory exhaustion and a subsequent denial of service (DoS). Exploitation requires local access and user interaction, such as a user or automated process attempting to convert a malicious image. As of the advisory date, no official patch has been confirmed beyond version 7.1.2-18.
Affected products
- ImageMagick ImageMagick <= 7.1.2-18
Timeline
- 2026-03-24: advisory: Initial GitHub Security Advisory published
- 2026-07-15: disclosed: CVE-2026-56375 published to NVD