CVE-2021-29571 is a high-severity (CVSS 7.8) Out-of-bounds Write vulnerability in tensorflow. 1 public exploit reference exists, so weaponization risk is real. A fix is available for tensorflow — see the affected versions and patch details below.
Memory corruption in `DrawBoundingBoxesV2`
EPSS Exploitation Probability
Probability of exploitation in the next 30 days, from FIRST.org EPSS.
How urgent is this, really
CVE-2021-29571 by exploitation likelihood (EPSS) against impact (CVSS). Outside the shaded patch-first corner.
Where this sits among everything scored
Of 385,987 CVEs with a current EPSS score, this one falls in the < 10% band (highlighted). Counts from FIRST.org, log-scaled.
Real-World Exposure
tensorflow🐍tensorflow🐍tensorflow🐍tensorflow🐍tensorflow-cpu🐍tensorflow-cpu🐍tensorflow-cpu🐍tensorflow-cpu+4 moreReal-time download stats are indexed for npm and PyPI packages. This vulnerability affects PyPI packages — download data is not available via public APIs for these ecosystems.
Description
Impact
The implementation of tf.raw_ops.MaxPoolGradWithArgmax can cause reads outside of bounds of heap allocated data if attacker supplies specially crafted inputs:
import tensorflow as tf
images = tf.fill([10, 96, 0, 1], 0.)
boxes = tf.fill([10, 53, 0], 0.)
colors = tf.fill([0, 1], 0.)
tf.raw_ops.DrawBoundingBoxesV2(images=images, boxes=boxes, colors=colors)
The implementation assumes that the last element of boxes input is 4, as required by the op. Since this is not checked attackers passing values less than 4 can write outside of bounds of heap allocated objects and cause memory corruption:
const auto tboxes = boxes.tensor<T, 3>();
for (int64 bb = 0; bb < num_boxes; ++bb) {
...
const int64 min_box_row = static_cast<float>(tboxes(b, bb, 0)) * (height - 1);
const int64 max_box_row = static_cast<float>(tboxes(b, bb, 2)) * (height - 1);
const int64 min_box_col = static_cast<float>(tboxes(b, bb, 1)) * (width - 1);
const int64 max_box_col = static_cast<float>(tboxes(b, bb, 3)) * (width - 1);
...
}
If the last dimension in boxes is less than 4, accesses similar to tboxes(b, bb, 3) will access data outside of bounds. Further during code execution there are also writes to these indices.
Patches
We have patched the issue in GitHub commit 79865b542f9ffdc9caeb255631f7c56f1d4b6517.
The fix will be included in TensorFlow 2.5.0. We will also cherrypick this commit on TensorFlow 2.4.2, TensorFlow 2.3.3, TensorFlow 2.2.3 and TensorFlow 2.1.4, as these are also affected and still in supported range.
For more information
Please consult our security guide for more information regarding the security model and how to contact us with issues and questions.
Attribution
This vulnerability has been reported by Yakun Zhang and Ying Wang of Baidu X-Team.
Affected Packages
| Ecosystem | Package | Vulnerable range | Fix |
|---|---|---|---|
| 🐍PyPI | tensorflow | all versions | 2.1.4pip install --upgrade 'tensorflow==2.1.4' |
| 🐍PyPI | tensorflow | ≥ 2.2.0&&< 2.2.3 | 2.2.3pip install --upgrade 'tensorflow==2.2.3' |
| 🐍PyPI | tensorflow | ≥ 2.3.0&&< 2.3.3 | 2.3.3pip install --upgrade 'tensorflow==2.3.3' |
| 🐍PyPI | tensorflow | ≥ 2.4.0&&< 2.4.2 | 2.4.2pip install --upgrade 'tensorflow==2.4.2' |
| 🐍PyPI | tensorflow-cpu | all versions | 2.1.4pip install --upgrade 'tensorflow-cpu==2.1.4' |
| 🐍PyPI | tensorflow-cpu | ≥ 2.2.0&&< 2.2.3 | 2.2.3pip install --upgrade 'tensorflow-cpu==2.2.3' |
Affected Products
tensorflowgoogleResearch use only. For defensive security, authorized penetration testing, and academic research only. Never execute exploit code against systems without explicit written authorization.
Detection & mitigation playbook
Open-source dependencyDetect
Scan your dependency tree (package-lock.json, pnpm-lock.yaml, requirements.txt, go.sum, etc.) for tensorflow, including transitive dependencies — a direct dependency you never call can still pull in a vulnerable version.
Fix
Update tensorflow to 2.1.4 or later, then make sure no transitive (indirect) dependency still pins the vulnerable range — O3 confirms CVE-2021-29571 is resolved across your whole dependency graph.
Workarounds
Stop feeding it untrusted input: reject or quarantine files and payloads from unverified sources until you can upgrade, restrict accepted formats to the ones you actually need, and run the parsing or decoding step in a least-privileged sandbox or short-lived worker so a crash or corrupted read cannot reach the rest of the process.
Frequently Asked Questions
Is CVE-2021-29571 in your dependencies?
Find it across PyPI, including transitive dependencies.