Cargo prior to Rust 1.26.0 may download the wrong dependencyGHSA-9f3p-wvj7-q82x
HIGHGHSA-9f3p-wvj7-q82x is a high-severity (CVSS 7.5) CWE-16 vulnerability in cargo. 2 public exploit or proof-of-concept references are indexed, so weaponization risk is real. A fix is available for cargo — see the affected versions and patch details below.
EPSS Exploitation Probability
Probability of exploitation in the next 30 days, from FIRST.org EPSS.
How urgent is this, really
Where this sits among everything scored
Real-World Exposure
cargoReal-time download stats are indexed for npm and PyPI packages. This vulnerability affects crates.io packages — download data is not available via public APIs for these ecosystems.
Description
Cargo prior to Rust 1.26.0 may download the wrong dependency if your package.toml file uses the package configuration key. Usage of the package key to rename dependencies in Cargo.toml is ignored in Rust 1.25.0 and prior. When Rust 1.25.0 and prior is used Cargo may download the wrong dependency, which could be squatted on crates.io to be a malicious package. This not only affects manifests that you write locally yourself, but also manifests published to crates.io. Rust 1.0.0 through Rust 1.25.0 is affected by this advisory because Cargo will ignore the package key in manifests. Rust 1.26.0 through Rust 1.30.0 are not affected and typically will emit an error because the package key is unstable. Rust 1.31.0 and after are not affected because Cargo understands the package key. Users of the affected versions are strongly encouraged to update their compiler to the latest available one. Preventing this issue from happening requires updating your compiler to be either Rust 1.26.0 or newer. There will be no point release for Rust versions prior to 1.26.0. Users of Rust 1.19.0 to Rust 1.25.0 can instead apply linked patches to mitigate the issue.
Affected Packages
| Ecosystem | Package | Vulnerable range | Fix |
|---|---|---|---|
| 🦀crates.io | cargo | all versions | 0.27.0cargo update -p cargo --precise 0.27.0 |
Affected Products
rustrust-langResearch use only. For defensive security, authorized penetration testing, and academic research only. Never execute exploit code against systems without explicit written authorization.
Detection & mitigation playbook
Open-source dependencyDetect
Scan your dependency tree (package-lock.json, pnpm-lock.yaml, requirements.txt, go.sum, etc.) for cargo, including transitive dependencies — a direct dependency you never call can still pull in a vulnerable version.
Fix
Update cargo to 0.27.0 or later, then make sure no transitive (indirect) dependency still pins the vulnerable range — O3 confirms GHSA-9f3p-wvj7-q82x is resolved across your whole dependency graph.
Workarounds
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.
Frequently Asked Questions
Is GHSA-9f3p-wvj7-q82x in your dependencies?
Find it across crates.io, including transitive dependencies.