### Summary A memory-safety vulnerability in Open Babel's SMILES parser caused a heap buffer overflow when reading a crafted input string. ### Details The flaw was in `OBSmilesParser::ParseSmiles`. A malformed SMILES input caused the parser to write past the end of a heap-allocated buffer. ### Impact Open Babel is a C++ library and CLI used to read and write chemistry file formats; it is shipped by Linux distributions and embedded in services that may parse untrusted input. Triggering this vulnerability requires the victim to parse a malicious SMILES string with the `obabel` tool, the `OBConversion` API, or any of the language bindings (Python, Ruby, Java, R, Perl, C#, PHP). SMILES strings are commonly passed on the command line and through scripted pipelines, so this primitive is especially reachable. ### Affected versions All releases up to and including 3.1.1. ### Patched version 3.2.0 (released 2026-05-26). ### Patch Fix commit: https://github.com/openbabel/openbabel/commit/b34cd604 Originally reported as #2831; fixes consolidated in #2913. A minimized reproducer for this CVE is checked in under `test/files/fuzz_regress/` and is exercised on every CI build under ASAN+UBSAN by the `fuzzregresstest` harness. ### Credit Reported via OSS-Fuzz.
### Summary A memory-safety vulnerability in Open Babel's SMILES parser caused a heap buffer overflow when reading a crafted input string. ### Details The flaw was in `OBSmilesParser::ParseSmiles`. A malformed SMILES input caused the parser to write past the end of a heap-allocated buffer. ### Impact Open Babel is a C++ library and CLI used to read and write chemistry file formats; it is shipped by Linux distributions and embedded in services that may parse untrusted input. Triggering this vulnerability requires the victim to parse a malicious SMILES string with the `obabel` tool, the `OBConversion` API, or any of the language bindings (Python, Ruby, Java, R, Perl, C#, PHP). SMILES strings are commonly passed on the command line and through scripted pipelines, so this primitive is especially reachable. ### Affected versions All releases up to and including 3.1.1. ### Patched version 3.2.0 (released 2026-05-26). ### Patch Fix commit: https://github.com/openbabel/openbabel/commit/b34cd604 Originally reported as #2831; fixes consolidated in #2913. A minimized reproducer for this CVE is checked in under `test/files/fuzz_regress/` and is exercised on every CI build under ASAN+UBSAN by the `fuzzregresstest` harness. ### Credit Reported via OSS-Fuzz.
Update openbabel to 3.2.0 if you use the affected versions. Test the change in a non-production environment first.
Local check
hol-guard supply-chain scanOpen Babel has heap buffer overflow in SMILES OBSmilesParser::ParseSmiles affects openbabel (pip). Severity is high. ### Summary A memory-safety vulnerability in Open Babel's SMILES parser caused a heap buffer overflow when reading a crafted input string. ### Details The flaw was in `OBSmilesParser::ParseSmiles`. A malformed SMILES input caused the parser to write past the end of a heap-allocated buffer. ### Impact Open Babel is a C++ library and CLI used to read and write chemistry file formats; it is shipped by Linux distributions and embedded in services that may parse untrusted input. Triggering this vulnerability requires the victim to parse a malicious SMILES string with the `obabel` tool, the `OBConversion` API, or any of the language bindings (Python, Ruby, Java, R, Perl, C#, PHP). SMILES strings are commonly passed on the command line and through scripted pipelines, so this primitive is especially reachable. ### Affected versions All releases up to and including 3.1.1. ### Patched version 3.2.0 (released 2026-05-26). ### Patch Fix commit: https://github.com/openbabel/openbabel/commit/b34cd604 Originally reported as #2831; fixes consolidated in #2913. A minimized reproducer for this CVE is checked in under `test/files/fuzz_regress/` and is exercised on every CI build under ASAN+UBSAN by the `fuzzregresstest` harness. ### Credit Reported via OSS-Fuzz.
AI coding agents often install or upgrade packages automatically in pip. A high vulnerability in a dependency can be pulled into a project through a normal install or update without a human reviewing the change, expanding the blast radius from a single package to every agent workspace that depends on it.
| Package | Affected range | Fixed version |
|---|---|---|
| openbabelpip | <3.2.0 | 3.2.0 |
Fixed versions are reported by the source feed; confirm compatibility before updating.
Reported by GitHub Security Advisories (ghsa).
HOL Guard can help your team review package activity against supported protection paths.
Explore HOL GuardUpdate openbabel to 3.2.0 if you use the affected versions. Test the change in a non-production environment first.
Local check
hol-guard supply-chain scanOpen Babel has heap buffer overflow in SMILES OBSmilesParser::ParseSmiles affects openbabel (pip). Severity is high. ### Summary A memory-safety vulnerability in Open Babel's SMILES parser caused a heap buffer overflow when reading a crafted input string. ### Details The flaw was in `OBSmilesParser::ParseSmiles`. A malformed SMILES input caused the parser to write past the end of a heap-allocated buffer. ### Impact Open Babel is a C++ library and CLI used to read and write chemistry file formats; it is shipped by Linux distributions and embedded in services that may parse untrusted input. Triggering this vulnerability requires the victim to parse a malicious SMILES string with the `obabel` tool, the `OBConversion` API, or any of the language bindings (Python, Ruby, Java, R, Perl, C#, PHP). SMILES strings are commonly passed on the command line and through scripted pipelines, so this primitive is especially reachable. ### Affected versions All releases up to and including 3.1.1. ### Patched version 3.2.0 (released 2026-05-26). ### Patch Fix commit: https://github.com/openbabel/openbabel/commit/b34cd604 Originally reported as #2831; fixes consolidated in #2913. A minimized reproducer for this CVE is checked in under `test/files/fuzz_regress/` and is exercised on every CI build under ASAN+UBSAN by the `fuzzregresstest` harness. ### Credit Reported via OSS-Fuzz.
AI coding agents often install or upgrade packages automatically in pip. A high vulnerability in a dependency can be pulled into a project through a normal install or update without a human reviewing the change, expanding the blast radius from a single package to every agent workspace that depends on it.
| Package | Affected range | Fixed version |
|---|---|---|
| openbabelpip | <3.2.0 | 3.2.0 |
Fixed versions are reported by the source feed; confirm compatibility before updating.
Reported by GitHub Security Advisories (ghsa).
HOL Guard can help your team review package activity against supported protection paths.
Explore HOL Guard