CVE-2017-0359: Diffoscope Diffoscope May Write To Arbitrary Vulnerability

CRITICAL
Advisory Identifier: GHSA-8p5c-f328-9fvv
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CVSS 9.8
CWE-22
Published
Advisory Summary

CVE-2017-0359 is a CRITICAL (CVSS 9.8) diffoscope may write to arbitrary vulnerability (CWE-22: Improper Limitation of a Pathname to a Restricted Directory ('Path Traversal')) affecting Diffoscope libraries in the PyPI ecosystem. The issue involves diffoscope may write to arbitrary locations due to an untrusted archive. Remediation is available by upgrading affected packages to version 76.

CVE-2017-0359 at a Glance

CVE Identifier CVE-2017-0359
GHSA Identifier GHSA-8p5c-f328-9fvv
Severity CRITICAL
CVSS v3.1 Base Score 9.8
CWE Classification CWE-22: Improper Limitation of a Pathname to a Restricted Directory ('Path Traversal')
Affected Product Diffoscope
Package Ecosystem PyPI
Published Date
Last Updated

Security Impact

CVSS: 9.8

The security impact metrics below are parsed directly from the CVSS v3.1 vector string (CVSS:3.1/AV:N/AC:L/PR:N/UI:N/S:U/C:H/I:H/A:H).

Attack Vector Network (AV:N)
Attack Complexity Low (AC:L)
Privileges Required None (PR:N)
User Interaction None (UI:N)
Scope Unchanged (S:U)
Confidentiality High (C:H)
Integrity High (I:H)
Availability High (A:H)

How to Fix CVE-2017-0359

To remediate this vulnerability, upgrade all affected Diffoscope dependencies to a patched release. Both direct and transitive dependencies should be checked, as frameworks or security libraries may pull in vulnerable versions transitively.

diffoscope fixed: 76 
pip install diffoscope>=76
Verify Direct and Transitive Dependencies

Run the following command in your project directory to verify that all resolved dependencies use the patched release: 

pip show diffoscope

How to Check if You Are Affected

To determine whether your Python environment is affected by CVE-2017-0359, inspect your installed packages using pip:

pip show diffoscope

Analyze the terminal output to locate any version of Diffoscope in your dependency tree. If any resolved version matches the vulnerable ranges listed in the table below (for example, versions earlier than 76), your application is affected.

Note: The pip show diffoscope command checks currently installed packages in your active Python environment.

Technical Details

Vulnerability Mechanism & Technical Analysis

This vulnerability is classified under CWE-22: Improper Limitation of a Pathname to a Restricted Directory ('Path Traversal'), where the product uses external input to construct a pathname that is intended to identify a file or directory that is located underneath a restricted parent directory, but the product does not properly neutralize special elements within the pathname that can cause the pathname to resolve to a location that is outside of the restricted directory. In Diffoscope, software state validation or input boundaries are circumvented during processing. Review the official source advisory statement below for specific affected components, classes, and reproduction details.

Source Advisory Statement

diffoscope before 76 writes to arbitrary locations on disk based on the contents of an untrusted archive.

CVE-2017-0359 Affected Diffoscope Versions

1 component(s)
Fixed Versions:
76
Product / Package Ecosystem Affected Versions Fixed Version
diffoscope
pypi/diffoscope
PyPI
< 76
76

References

NVD — CVE-2017-0359 NVD
https://nvd.nist.gov/vuln/detail/CVE-2017-0359
Security Fix Commit FIX COMMIT
https://github.com/anthraxx/diffoscope/commit/632a40828a54b399787c25e7fa243f732aef7e05
Security Fix Commit FIX COMMIT
https://github.com/anthraxx/diffoscope/commit/f379d1f611dbd5d361e12b732e07c8aee45ff226
bugs.debian.org/854723 WEB
https://bugs.debian.org/854723
bugs.debian.org/cgi-bin/bugreport.c... WEB
https://bugs.debian.org/cgi-bin/bugreport.cgi?bug=854723
GitHub Advisory / Wiki ADVISORY
https://github.com/advisories/GHSA-8p5c-f328-9fvv
Diffoscope Source Repository REPOSITORY
https://github.com/anthraxx/diffoscope
Diffoscope Source Repository REPOSITORY
https://github.com/pypa/advisory-database/tree/main/vulns/diffoscope/PYSEC-2018-83.yaml
Diffoscope Security Information SECURITY
https://security-tracker.debian.org/tracker/CVE-2017-0359

Frequently Asked Questions

What is CVE-2017-0359?
CVE-2017-0359 is a security vulnerability in Diffoscope involving Diffoscope may write to arbitrary locations due to an untrusted archive under CWE-22: Improper Limitation of a Pathname to a Restricted Directory ('Path Traversal').
Which Diffoscope versions are affected?
Affected versions include releases prior to 76 across affected packages: diffoscope.
What version fixes CVE-2017-0359?
Upgrading to 76 (or the latest patched release for your respective branch) resolves the vulnerability.
Is diffoscope affected?
Yes, diffoscope is affected in releases prior to 76. Upgrade your dependency to 76 or later.
What is the CVSS score of CVE-2017-0359?
CVE-2017-0359 has a CVSS v3.1 base score of 9.8 (CRITICAL) with vector string CVSS:3.1/AV:N/AC:L/PR:N/UI:N/S:U/C:H/I:H/A:H.
What CWE is associated with CVE-2017-0359?
CVE-2017-0359 is classified under CWE-22: Improper Limitation of a Pathname to a Restricted Directory ('Path Traversal') (The product uses external input to construct a pathname that is intended to identify a file or directory that is located underneath a restricted parent directory, but the product does not properly neutralize special elements within the pathname that can cause the pathname to resolve to a location that is outside of the restricted directory.).
How can I check PyPI dependencies for CVE-2017-0359?
Run the dependency tree command: 'pip show diffoscope'. This command lists direct and transitive dependencies in your build configuration so you can verify if a vulnerable version is resolved.
Machine-readable OSV JSON OSV v1.5 Schema
Normalized schema output
View Raw JSON 
{
  "schema_version" : "1.4.0",
  "id" : "GHSA-8p5c-f328-9fvv",
  "modified" : "2024-09-16T13:49:58Z",
  "published" : "2018-07-13T16:01:21Z",
  "aliases" : [ "CVE-2017-0359" ],
  "summary" : "Diffoscope may write to arbitrary locations due to an untrusted archive",
  "details" : "diffoscope before 76 writes to arbitrary locations on disk based on the contents of an untrusted archive.",
  "severity" : [ {
    "type" : "CVSS_V3",
    "score" : "CVSS:3.1/AV:N/AC:L/PR:N/UI:N/S:U/C:H/I:H/A:H"
  }, {
    "type" : "CVSS_V4",
    "score" : "CVSS:4.0/AV:N/AC:L/AT:N/PR:N/UI:N/VC:H/VI:H/VA:H/SC:N/SI:N/SA:N"
  } ],
  "affected" : [ {
    "package" : {
      "ecosystem" : "PyPI",
      "name" : "diffoscope"
    },
    "ranges" : [ {
      "type" : "ECOSYSTEM",
      "events" : [ {
        "introduced" : "0"
      }, {
        "fixed" : "76"
      } ]
    } ]
  } ],
  "references" : [ {
    "type" : "ADVISORY",
    "url" : "https://nvd.nist.gov/vuln/detail/CVE-2017-0359"
  }, {
    "type" : "WEB",
    "url" : "https://github.com/anthraxx/diffoscope/commit/632a40828a54b399787c25e7fa243f732aef7e05"
  }, {
    "type" : "WEB",
    "url" : "https://github.com/anthraxx/diffoscope/commit/f379d1f611dbd5d361e12b732e07c8aee45ff226"
  }, {
    "type" : "WEB",
    "url" : "https://bugs.debian.org/854723"
  }, {
    "type" : "WEB",
    "url" : "https://bugs.debian.org/cgi-bin/bugreport.cgi?bug=854723"
  }, {
    "type" : "ADVISORY",
    "url" : "https://github.com/advisories/GHSA-8p5c-f328-9fvv"
  }, {
    "type" : "PACKAGE",
    "url" : "https://github.com/anthraxx/diffoscope"
  }, {
    "type" : "WEB",
    "url" : "https://github.com/pypa/advisory-database/tree/main/vulns/diffoscope/PYSEC-2018-83.yaml"
  }, {
    "type" : "WEB",
    "url" : "https://security-tracker.debian.org/tracker/CVE-2017-0359"
  } ],
  "database_specific" : {
    "cwe_ids" : [ "CWE-22" ],
    "severity" : "CRITICAL",
    "github_reviewed" : true,
    "github_reviewed_at" : "2020-06-16T21:26:06Z",
    "nvd_published_at" : null
  }
}