GHSA-h9mw-grgx-2fhf
LOWsbt vulnerable to arbitrary file write via archive extraction (Zip Slip)
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.
Blast Radius
org.scala-sbt:sbt☕org.scala-sbt:io_2.12☕org.scala-sbt:io_2.13☕org.scala-sbt:io_3Real-time download stats are indexed for npm and PyPI packages. This vulnerability affects Maven packages — download data is not available via public APIs for these ecosystems.
Description
Impact
Given specially crafted zip or JAR file, IO.unzip allows writing of arbitrary file. The follow is an example of a malicious entry:
+2018-04-15 22:04:42 ..... 20 20 ../../../../../../root/.ssh/authorized_keys
This would have a potential to overwrite /root/.ssh/authorized_keys. Within sbt's main code, IO.unzip is used in pullRemoteCache task and Resolvers.remote; however many projects use IO.unzip(...) directly to implement custom tasks - https://github.com/search?q=IO.unzip+language%3AScala&type=code&l=Scala&p=1
Patches
The problem has been patched in https://github.com/sbt/io/pull/360 sbt 1.9.7 is available with the fix.
Workarounds
A workaround might be use some other library to unzip.
References
Affected Packages
| Ecosystem | Package | Vulnerable range | Fix |
|---|---|---|---|
| ☕Maven | org.scala-sbt:sbt | ≥ 0.3.4&&< 1.9.7 | 1.9.7 |
| ☕Maven | org.scala-sbt:io_2.12 | ≥ 1.0.0&&< 1.9.7 | 1.9.7 |
| ☕Maven | org.scala-sbt:io_2.13 | ≥ 1.0.0&&< 1.9.7 | 1.9.7 |
| ☕Maven | org.scala-sbt:io_3 | ≥ 1.0.0&&< 1.9.7 | 1.9.7 |
Research 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 org.scala-sbt:sbt. O3's reachability analysis confirms whether the vulnerable code path is actually invoked in your application, so you act on real exposure instead of every transitive match.
Fix
Update org.scala-sbt:sbt to 1.9.7 or later, then make sure no transitive (indirect) dependency still pins the vulnerable range — O3 confirms GHSA-h9mw-grgx-2fhf 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.
How O3 protects you
O3 pinpoints whether GHSA-h9mw-grgx-2fhf is reachable in your code and exactly where to fix it, then blocks exploitation in production at runtime until the patched version is deployed.
Tailored to GHSA-h9mw-grgx-2fhf. 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-h9mw-grgx-2fhf in your dependencies?
O3 detects GHSA-h9mw-grgx-2fhf across Maven dependencies and uses function-level reachability to confirm whether the vulnerable code path is actually reachable — not just present. No false positives.