GHSA-x895-2wrm-hvp7 CVE-2014-1932 PYSEC-2014-22
PIL and Pillow Vulnerable to Symlink Attack on Tmpfiles
- Severity
- 0.0 / 10
- High · CVSS 4.0
- Exploit chance (EPSS)
- 0.50%
- Chance of exploitation in the next 30 days. Higher than 42.55% of scored vulnerabilities.
- Known exploited
- No
- Not in CISA's catalog
- Weakness
- CWE-59 Improper Link Resolution Before File Access ('Link Following')
- Fix
2.3.1- Upgrade pillow to this version or later
Description
The (1) load_djpeg function in JpegImagePlugin.py, (2) Ghostscript function in EpsImagePlugin.py, (3) load function in IptcImagePlugin.py, and (4) _copy function in Image.py in Python Image Library (PIL) 1.1.7 and earlier and Pillow before 2.3.1 do not properly create temporary files, which allow local users to overwrite arbitrary files and obtain sensitive information via a symlink attack on the temporary file.
Affected versions
PyPI
How to fix
Move to the fixed version or later with your package manager, update the lockfile, and run your tests. If the package only arrives through another dependency, upgrade that dependency first. If none of its releases pulls a fixed version yet, force the version with your package manager's override.
pillow PyPI → 2.3.1
- pip
pip install --upgrade "pillow>=2.3.1"- poetry
poetry add "pillow>=2.3.1"- uv
uv add "pillow>=2.3.1"
Severity breakdown
CVSS 4.0 0.0
CVSS:4.0/AV:L/AC:L/AT:N/PR:N/UI:N/VC:H/VI:H/VA:N/SC:N/SI:N/SA:N
- Attack vector
- Local
- Attack complexity
- Low
- Attack requirements
- None
- Privileges required
- None
- User interaction
- None
- Confidentiality (vulnerable system)
- High
- Integrity (vulnerable system)
- High
- Availability (vulnerable system)
- None
- Confidentiality (subsequent systems)
- None
- Integrity (subsequent systems)
- None
- Availability (subsequent systems)
- None
CVSS 3.1 7.7
CVSS:3.1/AV:L/AC:L/PR:N/UI:N/S:U/C:H/I:H/A:N
- Attack vector
- Local
- Attack complexity
- Low
- Privileges required
- None
- User interaction
- None
- Scope
- Unchanged
- Confidentiality
- High
- Integrity
- High
- Availability
- None
Weakness
CWE-59: Improper Link Resolution Before File Access ('Link Following')
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.
How to prevent it
- Architecture and Design: 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
Advisories
Packages
Other links
- github.com/python-imaging/Pillow/commit/4e9f367dfd3f04c8f5d23f7f759ec12782e10ee7
- bugs.debian.org/cgi-bin/bugreport.cgi
- github.com/pypa/advisory-database/tree/main/vulns/pillow/PYSEC-2014-22.yaml
- security.gentoo.org/glsa/201612-52
- web.archive.org/web/20170103151725/http://www.securityfocus.com/bid/65511
- lists.opensuse.org/opensuse-updates/2014-05/msg00002.html
- openwall.com/lists/oss-security/2014/02/11/1
- ubuntu.com/usn/USN-2168-1
- securityfocus.com/bid/65511
Timeline
- Published
- Last updated by the source
- Latest EPSS score
Related advisories
| Advisory | Severity | Why it's related |
|---|---|---|
| PYSEC-2023-175 Pillow versions before v10.0.1 bundled libwebp binaries in wheels that are vulnerable to CVE-2023-5129 (previously CVE-2023-4863). | High Known exploited | Also affects pillow |
| GHSA-j7hp-h8jx-5ppr libwebp: OOB write in BuildHuffmanTable | High Known exploited | Also affects pillow |
| GHSA-78g4-xqwv-q3g8 Pillow: Bundled libopenjp2 2.5.4 in all wheels since 11.1.0 carries OSV-2025-219 heap-buffer-overflow write reachable from Image.open().load() | High | Also affects pillow |
| GHSA-654x-cwwv-5j9c Pillow: Arrow export leaks stale heap memory when PILLOW_ALIGNMENT > 1 | Medium | Also affects pillow |
| GHSA-xvh5-g6gv-559v Pillow: Memory disclosure and segfault in libtiff encoder via crafted TIFF tags | High | Also affects pillow |
| GHSA-g7cr-3p24-7wf7 Pillow: Heap buffer overflow writing JPEG comment after ICC profile fills buffer | High | Also affects pillow |
| GHSA-9v9v-9qvf-h2hj Pillow: Heap over-read in WMF/EMF rendering via 16-bit dimension truncation (Windows builds) | High | Also affects pillow |
| GHSA-g4qv-2jxx-769h Pillow: PNG eXIf chunk makes EXIF parsing run in quadratic time | Medium | Also affects pillow |
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