Vulnerabilities
Misconfiguration
Compliance
CVE Vulnerabilities

CVE-2021-28650

Improper Link Resolution Before File Access ('Link Following')

Published: Mar 17, 2021 | Modified: Nov 21, 2024
CVSS 3.x
5.5
MEDIUM
Source:
NVD
CVSS:3.1/AV:L/AC:L/PR:L/UI:N/S:U/C:H/I:N/A:N
CVSS 2.x
2.1 LOW
AV:L/AC:L/Au:N/C:P/I:N/A:N
RedHat/V2
RedHat/V3
3.9 LOW
CVSS:3.1/AV:L/AC:L/PR:L/UI:R/S:U/C:N/I:L/A:L
Ubuntu
MEDIUM
Vulnerability-free packages from our partners
root.io logo minimus.io logo echo.ai logo
Additional information
NVDhttps://nvd.nist.gov/vuln/detail/CVE-2021-28650
CWEhttps://cwe.mitre.org/data/definitions/59.html

autoar-extractor.c in GNOME gnome-autoar before 0.3.1, as used by GNOME Shell, Nautilus, and other software, allows Directory Traversal during extraction because it lacks a check of whether a files parent is a symlink in certain complex situations. NOTE: this issue exists because of an incomplete fix for CVE-2020-36241.

Weakness

The product attempts to access a file based on the filename, but it does not properly prevent that filename from identifying a link or shortcut that resolves to an unintended resource.

Affected Software

NameVendorStart VersionEnd Version
Gnome-autoarGnome*0.3.1 (excluding)
Red Hat Enterprise Linux 8RedHatgnome-autoar-0:0.2.3-2.el8*
Gnome-autoarUbuntubionic*
Gnome-autoarUbuntuesm-infra/bionic*
Gnome-autoarUbuntuesm-infra/focal*
Gnome-autoarUbuntufocal*
Gnome-autoarUbuntugroovy*
Gnome-autoarUbuntutrusty*
Gnome-autoarUbuntuupstream*

Potential Mitigations

  • Follow the principle of least privilege when assigning access rights to entities in a software system.
  • Denying access to a file can prevent an attacker from replacing that file with a link to a sensitive file. Ensure good compartmentalization in the system to provide protected areas that can be trusted.

References

Aqua Security is the largest pure-play cloud native security company, providing customers the freedom to innovate and run their businesses with minimal friction. The Aqua Cloud Native Security Platform provides prevention, detection, and response automation across the entire application lifecycle to secure the build, secure cloud infrastructure and secure running workloads wherever they are deployed.
Copyright © 2026 Aqua Security Software Ltd.   Privacy Policy | Terms of Use