The flaw exists in the DcmDicomDir::moveRecordToTree function of OFFIS DCMTK 3.7.0, where recursively following a chain of directory records linked through the Offset of Referenced Lower-Level Directory Entity attribute can cause uncontrolled recursion. This uncontrolled recursion exhausts stack memory and results in a process crash, delivering a denial‑of‑service condition. The weakness is a classic example of uncontrolled recursion (CWE‑674) and also reflects a failure to limit resource consumption (CWE‑770).

The vulnerability affects OFFIS DCMTK 3.7.0 and any application built on that library, including dcmgpdir and other media viewers that process DICOMDIR files. No tagged releases after 3.7.0 exist that contain the fix, so the patch must be applied through the specified commit or by building from the current master branch.

The CVSS score of 6.8 indicates a moderate severity. EPSS data is not available, and the vulnerability is not listed in CISA KEV, so the likelihood of exploitation is uncertain. The likely attack vector involves an attacker supplying a specially crafted DICOMDIR file that contains an excessively deep record chain to a vulnerable application. Successful exploitation results in stack exhaustion, a process crash, and loss of availability for that application.