CVE-2021-31272

Command execution via archive path traversal

Published Jun 18, 2021 · Updated Aug 3, 2024

Directory traversal in SerenityOS before the fix commit allows attackers to overwrite files via crafted tar or zip archives. The tar and unzip utilities accepted archive filenames containing parent-directory components and wrote outside the extraction directory; commit 3844e8569689dd476064a0759d704bc64fb3ca2c added path validation and skipped out-of-tree entries. Exploitation requires a crafted archive to be extracted, and successful overwrite can enable command execution or privilege escalation when a subsequently used file is replaced.

CVSS severity9.8
Critical
EPSS probability3.17%
Next 30 days · Sep 16, 2026
Known exploitationUnconfirmed
Based on sourced intelligence
Hinoki checkNot available
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Summary

What happened

Directory traversal in SerenityOS before the fix commit allows attackers to overwrite files via crafted tar or zip archives. The tar and unzip utilities accepted archive filenames containing parent-directory components and wrote outside the extraction directory; commit 3844e8569689dd476064a0759d704bc64fb3ca2c added path validation and skipped out-of-tree entries. Exploitation requires a crafted archive to be extracted, and successful overwrite can enable command execution or privilege escalation when a subsequently used file is replaced.

The record

CVE
CVE-2021-31272
Published
Jun 18, 2021
Updated
Aug 3, 2024
Vendor
Unknown vendor
Product
Unknown product
Classifications
CWE-22, T1203
Attack vector
local
Privileges
unauthenticated

Timeline

How it unfolded

  1. Jun 18, 2021CVE publishedPublication date reported by the CVE source.
  2. Aug 3, 2024Record updatedLatest update available in the CVE record.

Exploitability

Present is not the same as exploitable

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Is a vulnerable build present?

Affected buildAffected product and version details are unavailable.

What conditions does exploitation require?

Attack vectorlocal
Required privilegesunauthenticated

What is affected?

Affected products and versions are unavailable in this record.

Published CVSS scores

7.5NVDAV:N/AC:L/Au:N/C:P/I:P/A:P
9.8NVDCVSS:3.1/AV:N/AC:L/PR:N/UI:N/S:U/C:H/I:H/A:H

CVSS describes severity. EPSS estimates exploitation probability.

Attacks

What attackers are doing with it

Daily unique IPs observed by Shadowserver honeypots for known exploited vulnerabilities (KEVs). Missing observations do not establish an absence of attacks.

Daily unique IPsNo honeypot observations are available for this CVE in the selected window.

No observations available

Sep 10, 2026Sep 16, 2026
Latest reporting daySep 16, 2026
Latest daily unique IPsUnavailable
Prior 30-day averageUnavailable
SourceShadowserver honeypots (KEV)
Vectorlocal
Privilegesunauthenticated
Known exploitationUnconfirmed
Public exploitUnconfirmed

Weakness, pattern, technique

CWE-22Improper Limitation of a Pathname to a Restricted Directory ('Path Traversal')
T1203Exploitation for Client Execution

Public exploit references

No public exploit references are available in this record.

Labels summarize the accepted research assessment. They do not indicate a test against your environment.

Technologies

Your stack

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Your stack

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