What is CVE-2021-21235?

CVE-2021-21235 is a medium-severity uncontrolled resource consumption vulnerability in kamadak-exif (rust), affecting versions = 0.5.2. It is fixed in 0.5.3. Crafted input forces the application to consume excessive CPU, memory, or other resources, degrading or denying service.

How severe is CVE-2021-21235?

CVE-2021-21235 has a CVSS score of 6.5 (Medium). This score reflects the worst-case severity of the vulnerability, not your specific exposure. Whether it represents real risk in your environment depends on whether the vulnerable code is present and reachable.

Which versions of kamadak-exif are affected by CVE-2021-21235?

kamadak-exif (rust) versions = 0.5.2 is affected.

Is there a fix for CVE-2021-21235?

Yes. CVE-2021-21235 is fixed in 0.5.3. Upgrade to this version or later.

Is CVE-2021-21235 exploitable, and should I be worried?

Whether CVE-2021-21235 is exploitable in your environment depends on whether the vulnerable code is present and reachable. A CVSS score is a worst-case rating; it does not account for your specific deployment, configuration, or usage patterns. Kodem, an Intelligent Application Security platform, uses runtime intelligence to show which vulnerabilities actually execute in production, so you can focus on the ones that represent real risk.

What actually determines whether CVE-2021-21235 is exploitable, and how bad it is?

Exploitability and impact are not fixed properties of a CVE. They depend on runtime truth: whether the vulnerable code is present, reachable, and actually executes in your application. A high CVSS score on a dependency that never runs is not the same as real risk. Kodem, an Intelligent Application Security platform, uses runtime intelligence to reveal which vulnerabilities actually execute in production, so teams prioritize the ones that genuinely matter.

How do I fix CVE-2021-21235?

Upgrade kamadak-exif to 0.5.3 or later.

CVE-2021-21235 in kamadak-exif

Summary

kamadak-exif vulnerable to Infinite loop when parsing PNG files

Workarounds

No workaround is available.
Applications that do not pass files with the PNG signature to Reader::read_from_container are not affected.

References

For more information

If you have any questions or comments about this advisory:

Open an issue in github.com/kamadak/exif-rs

Impact

Reader::read_from_container can cause an infinite loop when a crafted PNG file is given.

Crafted input forces the application to consume excessive CPU, memory, or other resources, degrading or denying service. Typical impact: denial of service.

CVE-2021-21235 has a CVSS score of 6.5 (Medium). The vector is network-reachable, no privileges required, and user interaction required. A CVSS score reflects the worst-case severity of the vulnerability, not your specific exposure. Whether this affects your application depends on whether the vulnerable code is present and reachable in your environment. A fixed version is available (0.5.3); upgrading removes the vulnerable code path.

Affected versions

kamadak-exif (= 0.5.2)

Security releases

kamadak-exif → 0.5.3 (rust)

Kodem intelligence

Severity tells you how bad this could be in the worst case. It does not tell you whether you are exposed. Exploitability and impact are functions of runtime truth: whether the vulnerable code is present, reachable, and actually executes in your application. A vulnerable package can sit in your dependency tree and never run.

Kodem, an Intelligent Application Security platform, uses runtime intelligence to reveal which vulnerabilities actually execute in production, so teams prioritize the ones that genuinely matter. Kodem's runtime-powered SCA identifies whether this CVE is reachable in your applications.

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Remediation advice

Version 0.5.3 includes the fix.

Frequently Asked Questions

What is CVE-2021-21235? CVE-2021-21235 is a medium-severity uncontrolled resource consumption vulnerability in kamadak-exif (rust), affecting versions = 0.5.2. It is fixed in 0.5.3. Crafted input forces the application to consume excessive CPU, memory, or other resources, degrading or denying service.
How severe is CVE-2021-21235? CVE-2021-21235 has a CVSS score of 6.5 (Medium). This score reflects the worst-case severity of the vulnerability, not your specific exposure. Whether it represents real risk in your environment depends on whether the vulnerable code is present and reachable.
Which versions of kamadak-exif are affected by CVE-2021-21235? kamadak-exif (rust) versions = 0.5.2 is affected.
Is there a fix for CVE-2021-21235? Yes. CVE-2021-21235 is fixed in 0.5.3. Upgrade to this version or later.
Is CVE-2021-21235 exploitable, and should I be worried? Whether CVE-2021-21235 is exploitable in your environment depends on whether the vulnerable code is present and reachable. A CVSS score is a worst-case rating; it does not account for your specific deployment, configuration, or usage patterns. Kodem, an Intelligent Application Security platform, uses runtime intelligence to show which vulnerabilities actually execute in production, so you can focus on the ones that represent real risk. Get a demo
What actually determines whether CVE-2021-21235 is exploitable, and how bad it is? Exploitability and impact are not fixed properties of a CVE. They depend on runtime truth: whether the vulnerable code is present, reachable, and actually executes in your application. A high CVSS score on a dependency that never runs is not the same as real risk. Kodem, an Intelligent Application Security platform, uses runtime intelligence to reveal which vulnerabilities actually execute in production, so teams prioritize the ones that genuinely matter.
How do I fix CVE-2021-21235? Upgrade kamadak-exif to 0.5.3 or later.