Exploited

CVE-2025-27363

FreeType Out-of-Bounds Write Vulnerability

At a glance

Exploited. Added to CISA’s catalog of exploited vulnerabilities on May 6, 2025.

Affected product: FreeType (category Frameworks and libraries, indicative classification). Name in CISA’s catalog: FreeType FreeType.

What should I do?

Apply the patches or mitigations from FreeType; if none are available, stop using the product. For cloud services, follow the guidance from FreeType.

Deadline set by CISA for US federal agencies: 21 days (due May 27, 2025). It only binds those agencies, but it is a useful measure of urgency.

The vendor’s specific advisory is listed in the NVD references: CVE-2025-27363 on the NVD website.

Original text of the required action (CISA)

Apply mitigations per vendor instructions, follow applicable BOD 22-01 guidance for cloud services, or discontinue use of the product if mitigations are unavailable.

Timeline

March 11, 2025 Vulnerability published Publication date (NVD)
May 6, 2025 Exploitation confirmed Added to CISA’s KEV catalog
May 27, 2025 CISA deadline Remediation deadline set for US federal agencies

The facts, with their sources

Exploitation confirmed: Yes, on May 6, 2025 Date added to the catalog of exploited vulnerabilities. Exploitation itself may have started earlier. Source: KEV catalog, collected September 29, 2026 at 11:25 UTC
Ransomware: No known use to date That does not guarantee it is not being used: the information is not public. Source: KEV catalog, collected September 29, 2026 at 11:25 UTC
Hunt for compromise: Not requested by CISA Source: KEV catalog, collected September 29, 2026 at 11:25 UTC
CISA required action: Apply the patches or mitigations from FreeType; if none are available, stop using the product. For cloud services, follow the guidance from FreeType. Rewritten by this site from CISA’s original text. Source: KEV catalog, collected September 29, 2026 at 11:25 UTC
CISA deadline: May 27, 2025, 21 days Set for US federal agencies: a measure of urgency, not an obligation elsewhere. Source: KEV catalog, collected September 29, 2026 at 11:25 UTC
Vulnerability published: March 11, 2025 Source: National Vulnerability Database (NVD), collected September 29, 2026 at 11:29 UTC
Product according to CISA: FreeType FreeType Filed by this site under “Frameworks and libraries” (indicative classification). Source: KEV catalog, collected September 29, 2026 at 11:25 UTC
CVSS vector: CVSS:3.1/AV:N/AC:H/PR:N/UI:N/S:U/C:H/I:H/A:H Technical detail of the score: attack vector, complexity, impact. Source: National Vulnerability Database (NVD), collected September 29, 2026 at 11:29 UTC

Severity and activity

8.1 / 10 CVSS severity: high

Score from the NVD. Collected Sep 29, 2026.

— Probability of exploitation in the next 30 days (EPSS)

FIRST’s EPSS model. Since exploitation is already confirmed, this figure is mostly useful to compare activity. Collected Sep 29, 2026.

Description

An out of bounds write exists in FreeType versions 2.13.0 and below (newer versions of FreeType are not vulnerable) when attempting to parse font subglyph structures related to TrueType GX and variable font files. The vulnerable code assigns a signed short value to an unsigned long and then adds a static value causing it to wrap around and allocate too small of a heap buffer. The code then writes up to 6 signed long integers out of bounds relative to this buffer. This may result in arbitrary code execution. This vulnerability may have been exploited in the wild.

FreeType contains an out-of-bounds write vulnerability when attempting to parse font subglyph structures related to TrueType GX and variable font files that may allow for arbitrary code execution.

Summary from CISA (KEV catalog).

CERT-FR advisories

No advisory among the latest CERT-FR publications this site follows. That does not mean there are none.

Information reused under the Open Licence 2.0 (Etalab); the date of last update is shown for each advisory. This site is neither affiliated with nor endorsed by ANSSI.

Sources for this page

CISA KEV catalog: exploitation, date added, required action, deadline, ransomware.
NVD (NIST): CVSS severity, publication date, description, vendor references.
EPSS (FIRST): probability of exploitation.
CERT-FR: advisories and alerts (in French).
Brand and category: indicative classification by this site (method).