XXE in Openmicroscopy Bio-Formats
CVE-2026-22186
Bio-Formats versions up to and including 8.3.0 contain an XML External Entity (XXE) vulnerability in the Leica Microsystems metadata parsing component (e.g., XLEF). The parser uses an insecurely configured DocumentBuilderFactory when processing Leica XML-based metadata files, allowing external entity expansion and external DTD loading. A crafted metadata file can trigger outbound network requests (SSRF), access local system resources where readable, or cause a denial of service during XML parsing.
Vulnerability class: XXE (XML External Entity)
Published · last modified .
CVSS v3 metric
CVSS v3 base score 7.1 (High). Vector: CVSS:3.1/AV:L/AC:L/PR:N/UI:R/S:U/C:H/I:N/A:H.
EPSS exploit prediction
EPSS: 0.002 (5.6th percentile), scored .
Very low probability of exploitation in the next 30 days; routine patching cadence is appropriate. 6th percentile — 5.6% of CVEs in the catalogue have a lower EPSS than this one. How to read EPSS.
EPSS over last 30 days · oldest: 0.002 · newest: 0.002 · change: +0.000
Affected products
Weakness classification (CWE)
References
- seclists.org/fulldisclosure/2026/Jan/6 (technical-description, Mailing List, exploit)
- github.com/ome/bioformats/security/advisories/GHSA-x9vc-qh97-8gjp (vendor-advisory, patch)
- docs.openmicroscopy.org/bio-formats/ (release-notes, product, Release Notes)
- www.vulncheck.com/advisories/bio-formats-xxe-in-leica-xlef-metadata-parser (Third Party Advisory, third-party-advisory)
Frequently asked questions
- What is CVE-2026-22186?
- CVE-2026-22186 is a high-severity vulnerability in Openmicroscopy Bio-Formats, classified under Improper Restriction of XML External Entity Reference (XXE). CVSS score: 7.1/10. Published 2026-01-07.
- How severe is CVE-2026-22186?
- High severity. CVSS v3 base score is 7.1 out of 10.