CVE-2026-23879
Description
A flaw was found in py7zr. An attacker can craft a malicious archive containing symbolic links that, when extracted, can lead to arbitrary file writes outside the intended directory. This vulnerability may allow for remote code execution, privilege escalation, data corruption, or denial of service.
Statement
This flaw has an Important impact as py7zr shipped in Red Hat Ansible Automation Hub is susceptible to arbitrary file writes during archive extraction. An attacker can craft a malicious 7zip archive containing symbolic link chains that resolve outside the intended extraction directory, bypassing path validation. When a user or automated pipeline extracts the archive using py7zr's extractall method, subsequent files can be written to arbitrary locations on the filesystem, potentially leading to remote code execution or data corruption.
Mitigation
Mitigation for this issue is either not available or the currently available options do not meet the Red Hat Product Security criteria comprising ease of use and deployment, applicability to widespread installation base, or stability.
Understanding the Weakness (CWE)
Integrity,Confidentiality,Availability
Technical Impact: Execute Unauthorized Code or Commands
The attacker may be able to create or overwrite critical files that are used to execute code, such as programs or libraries.
Integrity
Technical Impact: Modify Files or Directories
The attacker may be able to overwrite or create critical files, such as programs, libraries, or important data. If the targeted file is used for a security mechanism, then the attacker may be able to bypass that mechanism. For example, appending a new account at the end of a password file may allow an attacker to bypass authentication.
Confidentiality
Technical Impact: Read Files or Directories
The attacker may be able read the contents of unexpected files and expose sensitive data. If the targeted file is used for a security mechanism, then the attacker may be able to bypass that mechanism. For example, by reading a password file, the attacker could conduct brute force password guessing attacks in order to break into an account on the system.
Availability
Technical Impact: DoS: Crash, Exit, or Restart
The attacker may be able to overwrite, delete, or corrupt unexpected critical files such as programs, libraries, or important data. This may prevent the product from working at all and in the case of protection mechanisms such as authentication, it has the potential to lock out product users.
Frequently Asked Questions
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