How severe is CVE-2017-8291?

CVE-2017-8291 has a CVSS 3.x base score of 7.8, rated high severity. It is exploitable over local access with low attack complexity, requires no privileges and user interaction. Impact on confidentiality is high, integrity high, and availability high.

Is CVE-2017-8291 being actively exploited?

Yes. CVE-2017-8291 is on CISA's Known Exploited Vulnerabilities (KEV) catalog, added on 2022-05-24, which means active exploitation has been confirmed. It should be prioritised for remediation.

What products are affected by CVE-2017-8291?

CVE-2017-8291 primarily affects Artifex Ghostscript. In total, 20 product configurations (CPEs) are listed as vulnerable; see the affected-products list for the exact versions.

How do I fix CVE-2017-8291?

Review the linked vendor and NVD advisories for patched versions and mitigations, then upgrade or apply the recommended workaround. Because this CVE is known to be actively exploited, treat remediation as urgent — CISA KEV typically sets a short remediation deadline.

Does CVE-2017-8291 have an EU (EUVD) identifier?

Yes. CVE-2017-8291 is tracked in the ENISA EU Vulnerability Database (EUVD) as EUVD-2017-17253. It is also flagged as exploited in the EUVD (since 2022-05-24).

When was CVE-2017-8291 published?

CVE-2017-8291 was published on 2017-04-27 and last updated on 2026-06-17.

CVE-2017-8291

CVE-2017-8291 is a high-severity vulnerability in Artifex Ghostscript with a CVSS 3.x base score of 7.8. It is listed in CISA's Known Exploited Vulnerabilities (KEV) catalog, confirming it has been exploited in the wild (added 2022-05-24). The underlying weakness is classified as CWE-843.

Key facts

Severity: High (CVSS 3.x base score 7.8)
CVSS v2: 6.8
EPSS exploit prediction: 97% (100th percentile)
Actively exploited: Yes — listed in CISA KEV (added 2022-05-24)
EU (EUVD) id: EUVD-2017-17253
EU exploitation: Flagged exploited in the ENISA EU Vulnerability Database (since 2022-05-24)
Weakness: CWE-843
Affected product: Artifex Ghostscript
Published: 2017-04-27
Last modified: 2026-06-17

Description

Artifex Ghostscript through 2017-04-26 allows -dSAFER bypass and remote command execution via .rsdparams type confusion with a "/OutputFile (%pipe%" substring in a crafted .eps document that is an input to the gs program, as exploited in the wild in April 2017.

Frequently asked questions

What is CVE-2017-8291?: Artifex Ghostscript through 2017-04-26 allows -dSAFER bypass and remote command execution via .rsdparams type confusion with a "/OutputFile (%pipe%" substring in a crafted .eps document that is an input to the gs program, as exploited in the wild in April 2017.
How severe is CVE-2017-8291?: CVE-2017-8291 has a CVSS 3.x base score of 7.8, rated high severity. It is exploitable over local access with low attack complexity, requires no privileges and user interaction. Impact on confidentiality is high, integrity high, and availability high.
Is CVE-2017-8291 being actively exploited?: Yes. CVE-2017-8291 is on CISA's Known Exploited Vulnerabilities (KEV) catalog, added on 2022-05-24, which means active exploitation has been confirmed. It should be prioritised for remediation.
What products are affected by CVE-2017-8291?: CVE-2017-8291 primarily affects Artifex Ghostscript. In total, 20 product configurations (CPEs) are listed as vulnerable; see the affected-products list for the exact versions.
How do I fix CVE-2017-8291?: Review the linked vendor and NVD advisories for patched versions and mitigations, then upgrade or apply the recommended workaround. Because this CVE is known to be actively exploited, treat remediation as urgent — CISA KEV typically sets a short remediation deadline.
Does CVE-2017-8291 have an EU (EUVD) identifier?: Yes. CVE-2017-8291 is tracked in the ENISA EU Vulnerability Database (EUVD) as EUVD-2017-17253. It is also flagged as exploited in the EUVD (since 2022-05-24).
When was CVE-2017-8291 published?: CVE-2017-8291 was published on 2017-04-27 and last updated on 2026-06-17.

References

Affected products (20)

cpe:2.3:a:artifex:ghostscript:*:*:*:*:*:*:*:*
cpe:2.3:o:debian:debian_linux:8.0:*:*:*:*:*:*:*
cpe:2.3:o:redhat:enterprise_linux_desktop:6.0:*:*:*:*:*:*:*
cpe:2.3:o:redhat:enterprise_linux_desktop:7.0:*:*:*:*:*:*:*
cpe:2.3:o:redhat:enterprise_linux_eus:7.3:*:*:*:*:*:*:*
cpe:2.3:o:redhat:enterprise_linux_eus:7.4:*:*:*:*:*:*:*
cpe:2.3:o:redhat:enterprise_linux_eus:7.5:*:*:*:*:*:*:*
cpe:2.3:o:redhat:enterprise_linux_eus:7.6:*:*:*:*:*:*:*
cpe:2.3:o:redhat:enterprise_linux_eus:7.7:*:*:*:*:*:*:*
cpe:2.3:o:redhat:enterprise_linux_server:6.0:*:*:*:*:*:*:*
cpe:2.3:o:redhat:enterprise_linux_server:7.0:*:*:*:*:*:*:*
cpe:2.3:o:redhat:enterprise_linux_server_aus:7.3:*:*:*:*:*:*:*
cpe:2.3:o:redhat:enterprise_linux_server_aus:7.4:*:*:*:*:*:*:*
cpe:2.3:o:redhat:enterprise_linux_server_aus:7.6:*:*:*:*:*:*:*
cpe:2.3:o:redhat:enterprise_linux_server_aus:7.7:*:*:*:*:*:*:*
cpe:2.3:o:redhat:enterprise_linux_server_tus:7.3:*:*:*:*:*:*:*
cpe:2.3:o:redhat:enterprise_linux_server_tus:7.6:*:*:*:*:*:*:*
cpe:2.3:o:redhat:enterprise_linux_server_tus:7.7:*:*:*:*:*:*:*
cpe:2.3:o:redhat:enterprise_linux_workstation:6.0:*:*:*:*:*:*:*
cpe:2.3:o:redhat:enterprise_linux_workstation:7.0:*:*:*:*:*:*:*

More vulnerabilities in Artifex Ghostscript

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CVE-2025-27831 — Critical (CVSS 9.8): An issue was discovered in Artifex Ghostscript before 10.05.0. The DOCXWRITE TXTWRITE device has a text buffer overflow…
CVE-2020-36773 — Critical (CVSS 9.8): Artifex Ghostscript before 9.53.0 has an out-of-bounds write and use-after-free in devices/vector/gdevtxtw.c (for…

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Other CWE-843 vulnerabilities

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CVE-2023-22579 — Critical (CVSS 9.9): Due to improper parameter filtering in the sequalize js library, can a attacker peform injection.
CVE-2026-13776 — Critical (CVSS 9.8): Type Confusion in Dawn in Google Chrome prior to 150.0.7871.47 allowed a remote attacker who had compromised the…
CVE-2026-43038 — Critical (CVSS 9.8): In the Linux kernel, the following vulnerability has been resolved: ipv6: icmp: clear skb2->cb[] in…
CVE-2025-70023 — Critical (CVSS 9.8): An issue pertaining to CWE-843: Access of Resource Using Incompatible Type was discovered in transloadit uppy v0.25.6.

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