Skip to content
Heist/ feed
Back to feed
Medium

Security advisory

Type: advisorySources: OSVCVE: CVE-2021-37644

TensorFlow is an end-to-end open source platform for machine learning. In affected versions providing a negative element to `num_elements` list argument of `tf.raw_ops.TensorListReserve` causes the runtime to abort the process due to reallocating a `std::vector` to have a negative number of elements. The [implementation](https://github.com/tensorflow/tensorflow/blob/8d72537c6abf5a44103b57b9c2e22c14f5f49698/tensorflow/core/kernels/list_kernels.cc#L312) calls `std::vector.resize()` with the new size controlled by input given by the user, without checking that this input is valid. We have patched the issue in GitHub commit 8a6e874437670045e6c7dc6154c7412b4a2135e2. The fix will be included in TensorFlow 2.6.0. We will also cherrypick this commit on TensorFlow 2.5.1, TensorFlow 2.4.3, and TensorFlow 2.3.4, as these are also affected and still in supported range.

Products
Not specified
Affected versions
Not specified
Fixed versions
Not specified
CVEs
CVE-2021-37644
Confirmed fixed CVEs
Not specified
Updated in this feed
31 Oct 2026, 12:38 UTC · Revision 1

Source evidence

CVE-2021-37644

core-osv · Original source

Published 12 Aug 2021, 21:15 UTC

TensorFlow is an end-to-end open source platform for machine learning. In affected versions providing a negative element to `num_elements` list argument of `tf.raw_ops.TensorListReserve` causes the runtime to abort the process due to reallocating a `std::vector` to have a negative number of elements. The [implementation](https://github.com/tensorflow/tensorflow/blob/8d72537c6abf5a44103b57b9c2e22c14f5f49698/tensorflow/core/kernels/list_kernels.cc#L312) calls `std::vector.resize()` with the new size controlled by input given by the user, without checking that this input is valid. We have patched the issue in GitHub commit 8a6e874437670045e6c7dc6154c7412b4a2135e2. The fix will be included in TensorFlow 2.6.0. We will also cherrypick this commit on TensorFlow 2.5.1, TensorFlow 2.4.3, and TensorFlow 2.3.4, as these are also affected and still in supported range.

osv:CVE-2021-37644
Complete source record
{
  "id": "43ecd7fd1132a4fef7112e5d326560086567f27360d4cf0657e8746162c6fc36",
  "url": "https://osv.dev/vulnerability/CVE-2021-37644",
  "method": "structured",
  "payload": {
    "kind": "advisory",
    "title": "CVE-2021-37644",
    "summary": "TensorFlow is an end-to-end open source platform for machine learning. In affected versions providing a negative element to `num_elements` list argument of `tf.raw_ops.TensorListReserve` causes the runtime to abort the process due to reallocating a `std::vector` to have a negative number of elements. The [implementation](https://github.com/tensorflow/tensorflow/blob/8d72537c6abf5a44103b57b9c2e22c14f5f49698/tensorflow/core/kernels/list_kernels.cc#L312) calls `std::vector.resize()` with the new size controlled by input given by the user, without checking that this input is valid. We have patched the issue in GitHub commit 8a6e874437670045e6c7dc6154c7412b4a2135e2. The fix will be included in TensorFlow 2.6.0. We will also cherrypick this commit on TensorFlow 2.5.1, TensorFlow 2.4.3, and TensorFlow 2.3.4, as these are also affected and still in supported range.",
    "evidence": "osv:CVE-2021-37644",
    "products": [],
    "severity": "medium",
    "structured": {
      "id": "CVE-2021-37644",
      "aliases": [
        "BIT-tensorflow-2021-37644",
        "CVE-2021-37644",
        "GHSA-27j5-4p9v-pp67",
        "PYSEC-2021-266",
        "PYSEC-2021-557",
        "PYSEC-2021-755"
      ],
      "metrics": [
        {
          "type": "CVSS_V3",
          "score": "CVSS:3.1/AV:L/AC:L/PR:L/UI:N/S:U/C:N/I:N/A:H"
        }
      ],
      "affected": [
        {
          "ranges": [
            {
              "repo": "https://github.com/tensorflow/tensorflow",
              "type": "GIT",
              "events": [
                {
                  "introduced": "b36436b087bd8e8701ef51718179037cccdfc26e"
                },
                {
                  "fixed": "7462dcaae1e8cfe1dfd0c62dd6083f9749a9d827"
                },
                {
                  "introduced": "582c8d236cb079023657287c318ff26adb239002"
                },
                {
                  "fixed": "4c0b84bf2a714bcdd18da1f1f94d533d72399d52"
                },
                {
                  "introduced": "a4dfb8d1a71385bd6d122e4f27f86dcebb96712d"
                },
                {
                  "last_affected": "5368d50428b30b7c9ccd038aec65d09252d16596"
                },
                {
                  "fixed": "8a6e874437670045e6c7dc6154c7412b4a2135e2"
                }
              ],
              "database_specific": {
                "extracted_events": [
                  {
                    "cpe": "cpe:2.3:a:google:tensorflow:*:*:*:*:*:*:*:*",
                    "range": [
                      {
                        "introduced": "2.3.0"
                      },
                      {
                        "fixed": "2.3.4"
                      }
                    ],
                    "source": "CPE_RANGE"
                  },
                  {
                    "cpe": "cpe:2.3:a:google:tensorflow:*:*:*:*:*:*:*:*",
                    "range": [
                      {
                        "introduced": "2.4.0"
                      },
                      {
                        "fixed": "2.4.3"
                      }
                    ],
                    "source": "CPE_RANGE"
                  },
                  {
                    "cpe": "cpe:2.3:a:google:tensorflow:2.5.0:*:*:*:*:*:*:*",
                    "range": [
                      {
                        "introduced": "2.5.0"
                      },
                      {
                        "last_affected": "2.5.0"
                      }
                    ],
                    "source": "CPE_STRING"
                  },
                  {
                    "cpe": "cpe:2.3:a:google:tensorflow:2.6.0:rc0:*:*:*:*:*:*",
                    "range": [
                      {
                        "introduced": "2.6.0-rc0"
                      },
                      {
                        "last_affected": "2.6.0-rc0"
                      }
                    ],
                    "source": "CPE_STRING"
                  },
                  {
                    "cpe": "cpe:2.3:a:google:tensorflow:2.6.0:rc1:*:*:*:*:*:*",
                    "range": [
                      {
                        "introduced": "2.6.0-rc1"
                      },
                      {
                        "last_affected": "2.6.0-rc1"
                      }
                    ],
                    "source": "CPE_STRING"
                  },
                  {
                    "cpe": "cpe:2.3:a:google:tensorflow:2.6.0:rc2:*:*:*:*:*:*",
                    "range": [
                      {
                        "introduced": "2.6.0-rc2"
                      },
                      {
                        "last_affected": "2.6.0-rc2"
                      }
                    ],
                    "source": "CPE_STRING"
                  },
                  {
                    "range": [
                      {
                        "fixed": "8a6e874437670045e6c7dc6154c7412b4a2135e2"
                      }
                    ],
                    "source": "REFERENCES_COMMIT"
                  }
                ]
              }
            }
          ],
          "versions": [
            "2.5.0",
            "2.6.0-rc0",
            "2.6.0-rc1",
            "2.6.0-rc2",
            "v2.3.3",
            "v2.4.2",
            "v2.3.2",
            "v2.4.1",
            "v2.4.0",
            "v2.3.1",
            "v2.3.0"
          ],
          "database_specific": {
            "source": "https://storage.googleapis.com/cve-osv-conversion/osv-output/CVE-2021-37644.json",
            "vanir_signatures": [
              {
                "id": "CVE-2021-37644-77944707",
                "digest": {
                  "threshold": 0.9,
                  "line_hashes": [
                    "316740824632138123961526621201759977616",
                    "190299703210212442452347130298797918743",
                    "271381315936730614581017834167408257525",
                    "227968478950961542708467871377077399451"
                  ]
                },
                "source": "https://github.com/tensorflow/tensorflow/commit/8a6e874437670045e6c7dc6154c7412b4a2135e2",
                "target": {
                  "file": "tensorflow/core/kernels/list_kernels.cc"
                },
                "deprecated": false,
                "signature_type": "Line",
                "signature_version": "v1"
              }
            ],
            "vanir_signatures_modified": "2026-10-20T14:10:40Z"
          }
        }
      ],
      "modified": "2026-10-20T14:10:40.077926821Z",
      "provider": "osv",
      "references": [
        "https://github.com/tensorflow/tensorflow/security/advisories/GHSA-27j5-4p9v-pp67",
        "https://github.com/tensorflow/tensorflow/commit/8a6e874437670045e6c7dc6154c7412b4a2135e2"
      ],
      "provider_metadata": {}
    },
    "related_cves": [
      {
        "value": "CVE-2021-37644",
        "evidence": "/id"
      }
    ],
    "security_relevant": true,
    "severity_evidence": "/severity/0/score"
  },
  "source_id": "core-osv",
  "document_id": 388634,
  "published_at": "2021-08-12T21:15:07.77+00:00"
}