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CVE-2021-38511 — HIGH Links in tar — CVE Details

HIGH

Links in archive can create arbitrary directories

Published August 25, 2021Updated November 8, 2023Source: osv

Summary

When unpacking a tarball that contains a symlink the tar crate may create directories outside of the directory it's supposed to unpack into. The function errors when it's trying to create a file, but the folders are already created at this point.

Advisory Timeline

  • First published August 25, 2021 (1874 days ago).
  • Last revised November 8, 2023 — 804 days after initial publication.

Remediation

Upgrade to the fixed version using your package manager.

Cargo
Update tar to 0.4.36 or later
cargo update -p tar --precise 0.4.36

After upgrading, run your dependency scanner again to confirm the vulnerability is resolved.

Affected Packages (1)

Affects 1 ecosystem: crates.io (1).

PackageEcosystemAffectedFixed In
tar
crates.io
All versions0.4.36

Vulnerability Classification

Common Weakness Enumeration (CWE) identifiers for this vulnerability type.

CVSS Score Breakdown

What the CVSS (Common Vulnerability Scoring System) 7.5 score means for each attack dimension.

Attack Vector
Network
Attack Complexity
Low
Privileges Required
None
User Interaction
None
Scope
Unchanged
Confidentiality
None
Integrity
High
Availability
None

CVSS:3.1/AV:N/AC:L/PR:N/UI:N/S:U/C:N/I:H/A:N

References

Frequently Asked Questions

What is CVE-2021-38511?
Links in archive can create arbitrary directories This vulnerability has been assigned a severity rating of HIGH (CVSS score: 7.5/10).
How do I check if my project is affected by CVE-2021-38511?
CVE-2021-38511 affects tar. Use GeekWala's free vulnerability scanner to check your dependencies against CVE-2021-38511 and 200,000+ other known vulnerabilities.

Severity & Exploitability

CVSS Score
7.5

High exploitability or significant impact. Prioritize remediation within days.

Also Known As

GHSA-62jx-8vmh-4mcw
RUSTSEC-2021-0080

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  • CVE-2026-18140
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  • CVE-2026-33055
    MEDIUM

    tar-rs incorrectly ignores PAX size headers if header size is nonzero

  • CVE-2026-33056
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    tar-rs `unpack_in` can chmod arbitrary directories by following symlinks

More crates.io advisories

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