GHSA-3cm8-v4mc-gppg is a high-severity (CVSS 7.8) Path Traversal vulnerability in binwalk. 6 public exploit references exist, so weaponization risk is real. No vendor fix is recorded yet; mitigation options are listed below.
Path traversal in binwalk
Exploitation Status
No confirmed exploitation observed yet
- A successful exploit gives an attacker total control of the affected component, not partial access.
- CISA’s own triage has not observed active exploitation or public proof-of-concept code for this CVE as of its last assessment.
Exploitation and automatability from CISA’s SSVC triage for GHSA-3cm8-v4mc-gppg.
EPSS Exploitation Probability
EPSS (Exploit Prediction Scoring System) is a daily probability model maintained by FIRST.org. It estimates the likelihood a CVE will be exploited in production environments within the next 30 days, derived from real-world threat intelligence signals.
How urgent is this, really
GHSA-3cm8-v4mc-gppg plotted by exploitation likelihood (EPSS) against impact (CVSS). The shaded corner — EPSS 50%+ and CVSS 7.0+ — is where this CVE doesn't sit, though severity or exploitability alone can still warrant action.
Where this sits among everything scored
Of 377,166 CVEs with a current EPSS score, this one falls in the 10–50% band (highlighted). Real counts from FIRST.org, not a sample — log-scaled since the landscape is heavily right-skewed.
Real-World Exposure
binwalkReal-time download stats are indexed for npm and PyPI packages. This vulnerability affects PyPI packages — download data is not available via public APIs for these ecosystems.
Description
A path traversal vulnerability was identified in ReFirm Labs binwalk from version 2.1.2b through 2.3.3 inclusive. By crafting a malicious PFS filesystem file, an attacker can get binwalk's PFS extractor to extract files at arbitrary locations when binwalk is run in extraction mode (-e option). Remote code execution can be achieved by building a PFS filesystem that, upon extraction, would extract a malicious binwalk module into the folder .config/binwalk/plugins. This vulnerability is associated with program files src/binwalk/plugins/unpfs.py. This issue affects binwalk from 2.1.2b through and including 2.3.3.
Affected Packages
| Ecosystem | Package | Vulnerable range | Fix |
|---|---|---|---|
| 🐍PyPI | binwalk | ≥ 2.1.2b | No fix |
Research use only. For defensive security, authorized penetration testing, and academic research only. Never execute exploit code against systems without explicit written authorization.
Binwalk v2.3.2 - Remote Command Execution (RCE)
by Etienne Lacoche · Apr 5, 2023
Detection & mitigation playbook
Open-source dependencyDetect
Scan your dependency tree (package-lock.json, pnpm-lock.yaml, requirements.txt, go.sum, etc.) for binwalk, including transitive dependencies — a direct dependency you never call can still pull in a vulnerable version.
Remediation status
No patched version of binwalk has shipped for GHSA-3cm8-v4mc-gppg yet. Where your build allows, override or pin the dependency away from the vulnerable range, and apply any maintainer-recommended mitigation.
Mitigate without a patch
If you can't upgrade right away: gate or disable the affected feature, validate untrusted input at the boundary, and avoid passing attacker-controlled data into the vulnerable path. O3's runtime protection blocks exploitation in production as an interim safeguard until the upgrade lands.
How O3 protects you
O3 Security's impact-aware SCA analyses which vulnerable code paths your application actually calls, so a match like GHSA-3cm8-v4mc-gppg can be triaged on real exposure rather than presence alone.
Tailored to GHSA-3cm8-v4mc-gppg. Runtime protection reduces exposure until a permanent patch is applied and verified — it complements patching, it doesn't replace it.
Frequently Asked Questions
Is GHSA-3cm8-v4mc-gppg in your dependencies?
O3 Security finds GHSA-3cm8-v4mc-gppg across PyPI dependencies, including transitive ones, and its impact-aware SCA ranks findings by whether your code actually calls the vulnerable path.