CVE-2022-32545 in Imagemagick
Summary
by MITRE • 06/16/2022
A vulnerability was found in ImageMagick, causing an outside the range of representable values of type 'unsigned char' at coders/psd.c, when crafted or untrusted input is processed. This leads to a negative impact to application availability or other problems related to undefined behavior.
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Analysis
by VulDB Data Team • 05/29/2026
The vulnerability identified as CVE-2022-32545 represents a critical integer overflow condition within ImageMagick's PSD file format processor, specifically in the coders/psd.c source file. This flaw manifests when the software processes maliciously crafted or untrusted PSD input files, creating a scenario where arithmetic operations exceed the bounds of the unsigned char data type. The underlying issue stems from insufficient input validation and boundary checking mechanisms that fail to properly handle malformed data structures within the PSD file format. Such vulnerabilities fall under the CWE-191 category of Integer Underflow (Wrap or Wraparound) and are classified as CWE-194 in cases involving signed integer overflow. The vulnerability exposes ImageMagick to potential denial of service attacks and arbitrary code execution risks when processing untrusted image content.
The technical exploitation of this vulnerability occurs through carefully constructed PSD files that manipulate the file header or metadata fields to trigger integer underflow conditions. When the PSD parser attempts to process these malicious inputs, it performs calculations that result in values outside the representable range of unsigned char data type, which typically spans from 0 to 255. This condition leads to undefined behavior where the application may exhibit unpredictable memory access patterns, stack corruption, or null pointer dereferences. The flaw can be leveraged by attackers to cause application crashes, memory corruption, or potentially execute arbitrary code depending on the execution environment and memory layout. According to ATT&CK framework, this vulnerability maps to T1203 (Exploitation for Client Execution) and T1499 (Endpoint Denial of Service) techniques, as it enables both remote code execution and availability disruption.
The operational impact of CVE-2022-32545 extends beyond simple application crashes to potentially compromise entire systems when ImageMagick is deployed in server environments or used as part of larger applications. Systems that process untrusted image uploads, such as web applications, content management systems, or digital asset management platforms, become particularly vulnerable to this attack vector. The vulnerability affects various versions of ImageMagick, with the issue being most prevalent in installations that lack proper input sanitization mechanisms. Organizations using ImageMagick in production environments face significant risk of service disruption, data integrity compromise, or unauthorized access if they fail to apply the appropriate security patches. The vulnerability's exploitation requires minimal user interaction, as it can be triggered through automated processing of malicious files, making it particularly dangerous in environments where automated image processing workflows are common. Security professionals should consider implementing network-level protections and application whitelisting measures to mitigate the risk while awaiting official patches from ImageMagick maintainers.
Mitigation strategies for CVE-2022-32545 should include immediate patching of ImageMagick installations to the latest secure versions that address the integer overflow condition. Organizations should implement strict input validation for all image file processing workflows and consider deploying sandboxed environments for handling untrusted image content. Network segmentation and access controls can help limit the potential impact of exploitation attempts. Additionally, implementing automated monitoring for unusual application behavior, memory access patterns, or service disruptions can aid in early detection of exploitation attempts. Security teams should also consider disabling unnecessary image format support in ImageMagick installations to reduce the attack surface. Regular security assessments and vulnerability scanning should be conducted to identify any other potential integer overflow conditions within the software stack. The remediation process should align with industry best practices for secure software development and application hardening as outlined in NIST SP 800-53 and ISO 27001 standards.