CVE-2023-38346Public exploitNetwork attack vector

Arbitrary file overwrite via unsafe TAR extraction

Published Sep 22, 2023 · Updated Sep 25, 2024

Path traversal in Wind River VxWorks 6.9 and 7.0 allows attackers to overwrite files via an untrusted TAR archive. tarExtract accepts absolute paths and parent-directory segments, then writes archive members outside the intended extraction directory instead of rejecting or sanitizing them. Exploitation requires product code to pass attacker-controlled archives to tarExtract; elevated extraction privileges permit arbitrary file overwrite and system compromise.

CVSS severity8.8
High
EPSS probability1.24%
Next 30 days · Sep 16, 2026
Known exploitationUnconfirmed
Based on sourced intelligence
Hinoki checkNot available
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Summary

What happened

Path traversal in Wind River VxWorks 6.9 and 7.0 allows attackers to overwrite files via an untrusted TAR archive. tarExtract accepts absolute paths and parent-directory segments, then writes archive members outside the intended extraction directory instead of rejecting or sanitizing them. Exploitation requires product code to pass attacker-controlled archives to tarExtract; elevated extraction privileges permit arbitrary file overwrite and system compromise.

The record

CVE
CVE-2023-38346
Published
Sep 22, 2023
Updated
Sep 25, 2024
Vendor
Wind River
Product
VxWorks
Classifications
CWE-22
Attack vector
network
Privileges
authenticated

Timeline

How it unfolded

  1. Sep 22, 2023CVE publishedPublication date reported by the CVE source.
  2. Sep 25, 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?

Compare these published version ranges with your installed build and any vendor patches.

  1. Affected versionversion=6.9
  2. Affected versionversion=7.0

What conditions does exploitation require?

Attack vectornetwork
Required privilegesauthenticated

What is affected?

Wind River · VxWorksversion=6.9; version=7.0

Published CVSS scores

8.8NIST NVDCVSS:3.1/AV:N/AC:L/PR:L/UI:N/S:U/C:H/I:H/A:H
8.8CISA-ADPCVSS:3.1/AV:N/AC:L/PR:L/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)
Vectornetwork
Privilegesauthenticated
Known exploitationUnconfirmed
Public exploitPublished

Weakness, pattern, technique

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

Public exploit references

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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