# CVE-2025-53012: MaterialX's Lack of Import Depth Limit Leads to DoS (Denial-Of-Service) Via Stack Exhaustion

> Attackers can crash applications using the MaterialX library by providing deeply nested file imports, causing stack exhaustion.

- **Severity:** Medium 5.5 (`CVSS:4.0/AV:N/AC:L/AT:N/PR:N/UI:N/VC:N/VI:N/VA:L/SC:N/SI:N/SA:N/E:P`)
- **Exploited in the wild:** Not known
- **Login needed:** Not needed
- **Attackable:** Over the internet
- **Victim action needed:** Not needed
- **Fix available:** Yes
- **Published:** 1 Aug 2025
- **Updated:** 1 Aug 2025
- **Also known as:** GHSA-qc2h-74x3-4v3w, PYSEC-2026-1608

## What is CVE-2025-53012?

CVE-2025-53012 is a medium-severity denial of service vulnerability in AcademySoftwareFoundation MaterialX, published on 1 Aug 2025. An attacker can exploit it over the internet without logging in, with no action from the victim.

### Official description

MaterialX is an open standard for the exchange of rich material and look-development content across applications and renderers. In version 1.39.2, nested imports of MaterialX files can lead to a crash via stack memory exhaustion, due to the lack of a limit on the "import chain" depth. When parsing file imports, recursion is used to process nested files; however, there is no limit imposed to the depth of files that can be parsed by the library. By building a sufficiently deep chain of MaterialX files one referencing the next, it is possible to crash the process using the MaterialX library via stack exhaustion. This is fixed in version 1.39.3.

Weakness: CWE-400 (Uncontrolled Resource Consumption)

## Which versions are affected by CVE-2025-53012?

3 open source packages ship an affected version, including materialx and MaterialX. It affects 1 product.


| Package | Ecosystem | Affected | Fixed in |
| --- | --- | --- | --- |
| `materialx` | PyPI | From 1.39.2 | 1.39.3 |
| `materialx` | PyPI | From 1.39.2 | 1.39.3 |
| `MaterialX` | PyPI | From 1.39.2 | 1.39.3 |

Products: Linuxfoundation Materialx.

## How do I fix CVE-2025-53012?

Upgrade materialx to 1.39.3 or later.

## Is CVE-2025-53012 being exploited?

It is not confirmed as exploited in the wild, but public exploit code for CVE-2025-53012 exists.

## Other vulnerabilities in AcademySoftwareFoundation MaterialX

- [CVE-2025-53009](https://insights.sbomify.com/CVE-2025-53009/): MaterialX Stack Overflow via Lack of MTLX XML Parsing Recursion Limit (medium 5.5)
- [CVE-2025-53010](https://insights.sbomify.com/CVE-2025-53010/): MaterialX's unchecked nodeGraph->getOutput return is vulnerable to NULL Pointer Dereference (low 2.0)
- [CVE-2025-53011](https://insights.sbomify.com/CVE-2025-53011/): MaterialX is Vulnerable to NULL Pointer Dereference due to Unchecked implGraphOutput (low 2.0)

## Fix prompt for AI coding agents

```text
Check this codebase for CVE-2025-53012 and fix it if it is affected.

What it is: CVE-2025-53012 is a medium-severity denial of service vulnerability in AcademySoftwareFoundation MaterialX, published on 1 Aug 2025. An attacker can exploit it over the internet without logging in, with no action from the victim.
Exploitation: It is not confirmed as exploited in the wild, but public exploit code for CVE-2025-53012 exists.

Affected packages and fixed versions:
- materialx (PyPI): affected from 1.39.2; fixed in 1.39.3
- materialx (PyPI): affected from 1.39.2; fixed in 1.39.3
- MaterialX (PyPI): affected from 1.39.2; fixed in 1.39.3

Task:
1. Search the dependency manifests and lockfiles (for example package.json, package-lock.json, requirements.txt, poetry.lock, uv.lock, pom.xml, build.gradle, go.mod, Cargo.lock, Gemfile.lock) and any Dockerfiles for the affected packages, including transitive dependencies.
2. If an affected version is in use, upgrade it to the fixed version for its release line with the project's package manager, so the lockfile is regenerated. Prefer the smallest upgrade that fixes it.
3. If there is no fix, or the upgrade would break the build, do not guess: explain the risk and the safest workaround instead.
4. Run the tests and summarise what changed and why.
5. If nothing in the project is affected, say so and change nothing.

Reference: https://insights.sbomify.com/CVE-2025-53012/ (Markdown: https://insights.sbomify.com/CVE-2025-53012/index.md)
```

## Sources

- CVE record: https://www.cve.org/CVERecord?id=CVE-2025-53012
- NVD: https://nvd.nist.gov/vuln/detail/CVE-2025-53012
- OSV: https://osv.dev/vulnerability/CVE-2025-53012

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From sbomify Insights: https://insights.sbomify.com/CVE-2025-53012/
Summaries are generated and may contain mistakes; the official description above is the record.