UNKNOWN READ vulnerability in ghostscript

ghostscript Updated 02 Oct 2025

Summary

26/12/2021

Disclosed on

MEDIUM

Severity

Yes i

Fix available

Medium

Severity

Not published

CVSS Score

OSV-2021-1764: UNKNOWN READ in read_xref_stream_entries. Affects ghostscript versions >= 75fbddf52051987287e62d13c659eb73ba16982f, < b0855fa22cd6ba447482ee2ae1c5e091428c4bc0. Fixed in b0855fa22cd6ba447482ee2ae1c5e091428c4bc0. How to fix ↓

Free scan

Check if this vulnerability affects your application

Upload a manifest or SBOM and we'll show whether you're affected, plus every other risky package in the same scan.

Check my app free

No signup required · Results in about 60 seconds

Upload your dependency manifest or SBOM

Drag & drop your file here or Browse

Java Javascript PHP Python Go Rust Ruby Dart C/C++ Elixir CycloneDX SPDX

Upload a supported dependency manifest or SBOM. No installation or source-code access required.

See supported files and SBOM formats

SBOM sbom.json · bom.json · bom.xml · *.spdx.json · *.cdx.json · *.cdx.xml

Java pom.xml · gradle.lockfile · buildscript-gradle.lockfile

Javascript package-lock.json · yarn.lock · pnpm-lock.yaml

PHP composer.lock

Python poetry.lock · requirements.txt · Pipfile.lock

Go go.mod

Rust Cargo.lock

Ruby Gemfile.lock

Dart pubspec.lock

C/C++ conan.lock

Elixir mix.lock

Enter your work email to receive your report link.

Verify your email to view the full report and start 30 days of continuous monitoring. No credit card required.

Background

Ghostscript is an open-source interpreter for the PostScript language and the PDF file format. It is widely used for rendering and converting PDF documents. The vulnerability identified in Ghostscript allows for an UNKNOWN READ operation, which can lead to a crash or potential exploitation of the system. This vulnerability affects versions of Ghostscript up to a certain commit.

Vulnerability Detail

The vulnerability arises in the read_xref_stream_entries function of Ghostscript. It can be triggered by a specially crafted PDF file, causing an UNKNOWN READ operation. This can result in a crash or potentially be exploited by an attacker to execute arbitrary code. The vulnerability has a medium severity rating.

How To Fix

Minimum fixed version

b0855fa22cd6ba447482ee2ae1c5e091428c4bc0

This is the first release that contains the fix.

Tip — Not sure which version your app runs? Vulert can match this fix to it. Scan free →

Workaround

As a temporary workaround, users can avoid opening untrusted PDF files with Ghostscript until the vulnerability has been patched.

Conclusion

In conclusion, the UNKNOWN READ vulnerability in Ghostscript can lead to a crash or potential code execution. It is recommended to update to the latest version of Ghostscript to mitigate this issue. For further support on vulnerability remediation, please contact DevNack.com.

See every vulnerability recorded for ghostscript →