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Public proof of conceptFix available

CVE-2021-37501

A public proof of concept exists; no exploitation attested.

  • Published2023-02-03
  • WeaknessCWE-787

Am I affected?

With a domain, we read the version its public headers and pages expose. A distribution build can carry the fix under an older number.

Description

Buffer Overflow vulnerability in HDFGroup hdf5-h5dump 1.12.0 through 1.13.0 allows attackers to cause a denial of service via h5tools_str_sprint in /hdf5/tools/lib/h5tools_str.c.

Timeline

dates in UTC
  1. 2023-02-0318:15CVE publishedNVD

Versions per branch

NVD
Hdfgroup hdf5
BranchAffectedFixed in
1.x≥ 1.12.0, ≤ 1.13.0no fix published

as publishedRanges as NVD and OSV publish them; a distribution’s build can be fixed under an older number.

Distribution builds and vendor advisories

Packages from OSV.dev and products from the vendors' CSAF advisories.

version not verifiedVersions not verified: read as OSV.dev and the vendors publish them, not checked against each vendor's release list.

Packages

  • adios_1_13_1-gnu-mpich-hpcSUSE:Linux Enterprise High Performance Computing 15 SP3-LTSSall versions · fixed in 1.13.1-150300.12.4.2and 3 other packages
  • hdf5Ubuntu:Pro:20.04:LTSall versions · no fixed version listed
  • hdf5Ubuntu:Pro:18.04:LTSall versions · no fixed version listed
  • hdf5Ubuntu:Pro:16.04:LTSall versions · no fixed version listed
  • hdf5Ubuntu:Pro:14.04:LTSall versions · no fixed version listed
  • hdf5Ubuntu:22.04:LTSall versions · no fixed version listed
  • hdf5SUSE:Linux Enterprise Module for Package Hub 15 SP4all versions · fixed in 1.10.8-150400.3.6.1and 5 other packages
  • hdf5Root:Debian:12all versions · fixed in 1.10.8+repack1-1.root.io.18and 1 other package

56 more package ranges on OSV.dev

Vendor advisories

  • CVE-2021-37501 Red Hat Product Security28 products fixed

    hdf5: heap buffer overread

  • RHSA-2025:3801 Red Hat Product Security28 products fixed

    Red Hat Security Advisory: RHEL AI 1.5 hdf5 security update

Full record on NVD

Fix

  1. Vendor fix Red Hat Product Security RHSA-2025:3801 · 28 productsBefore applying this update, make sure all previously released errata relevant to your system have been applied. For details on how to apply this update, refer to: https://access.redhat.com/articles/11258

Detection

Nuclei template
none so far
ProjectDiscovery
Exploit-DB
no entry
Exploit-DB
Proof of concept
Metasploit modules
none listed
Metasploit Framework

Sources

Identifiers

Technical details

CVSS v3 Vector
CVSS:3.1/AV:N/AC:L/PR:N/UI:N/S:U/C:N/I:N/A:H
Published
2023-02-03
Last Modified
2026-06-17
NVD status
Modified
GitHub Advisory
GHSA-rfgw-5vq3-wrjf

Frequently asked questions

What is CVE-2021-37501?

Buffer Overflow vulnerability in HDFGroup hdf5-h5dump 1.12.0 through 1.13.0 allows attackers to cause a denial of service via h5tools_str_sprint in /hdf5/tools/lib/h5tools_str.c.

Is CVE-2021-37501 actively exploited?

A proof-of-concept exploit exists for CVE-2021-37501, but active exploitation has not been confirmed at this time.

What is the CVSS score for CVE-2021-37501?

CVE-2021-37501 has a CVSS v3 base score of 7.5 (HIGH severity), with vector string CVSS:3.1/AV:N/AC:L/PR:N/UI:N/S:U/C:N/I:N/A:H.

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Surveillance reads the versions in your stack — a domain, a lockfile or a list — checks each CVE against the ranges its sources publish, and alerts you when one you run is exploited or enters CISA KEV. A version it cannot read stays « version not verified ».

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Sources for this record