# CVE-2010-2197: Path traversal in n/a

> Attackers can delete home directories by tricking users into building RPMs with malicious spec files containing specific syntax sequences.

- **Severity:** Medium 5.8 (`AV:N/AC:M/Au:N/C:N/I:P/A:P`)
- **Exploited in the wild:** Not known
- **Login needed:** Not needed
- **Attackable:** Local or same network only
- **Victim action needed:** A user has to click or open something
- **Fix available:** Yes
- **Published:** 8 Jun 2010
- **Updated:** 7 Aug 2024
- **Also known as:** DEBIAN-CVE-2010-2197, GHSA-6gj2-w23f-chf3

## What is CVE-2010-2197?

CVE-2010-2197 is a medium-severity path traversal vulnerability in n/a, published on 8 Jun 2010. It can only be exploited from the same machine or local network, and only if a user opens a file or follows a link.

### Official description

rpmbuild in RPM 4.8.0 and earlier does not properly parse the syntax of spec files, which allows user-assisted remote attackers to remove home directories via vectors involving a ;~ (semicolon tilde) sequence in a Name tag.

Weakness: CWE-264

## Which versions are affected by CVE-2010-2197?

It affects 1 product.


Products: Rpm Rpm.

## How do I fix CVE-2010-2197?

Upgrade to a fixed version.

## Is CVE-2010-2197 being exploited?

There is no known exploitation of CVE-2010-2197 in the wild and no public exploit code.

## Other vulnerabilities in n/a

- [CVE-2014-8118](https://insights.sbomify.com/CVE-2014-8118/): Integer overflow in n/a (critical 10.0)
- [CVE-2011-3378](https://insights.sbomify.com/CVE-2011-3378/): Memory corruption in n/a (critical 9.3)
- [CVE-2017-7501](https://insights.sbomify.com/CVE-2017-7501/): Path traversal in rpm (high 7.8)
- [CVE-2017-7500](https://insights.sbomify.com/CVE-2017-7500/): Path traversal in rpm (high 7.3)
- [CVE-2005-4889](https://insights.sbomify.com/CVE-2005-4889/): Race condition in n/a (high 7.2)

## Fix prompt for AI coding agents

```text
Check this codebase for CVE-2010-2197 and fix it if it is affected.

What it is: CVE-2010-2197 is a medium-severity path traversal vulnerability in n/a, published on 8 Jun 2010. It can only be exploited from the same machine or local network, and only if a user opens a file or follows a link.
Exploitation: There is no known exploitation of CVE-2010-2197 in the wild and no public exploit code.

Affected product: n/a. No package-level version data is available, so check the vendor advisory linked from the reference page.

Task:
1. Search the dependency manifests and lockfiles (for example package.json, package-lock.json, requirements.txt, poetry.lock, uv.lock, pom.xml, build.gradle, go.mod, Cargo.lock, Gemfile.lock) and any Dockerfiles for the affected packages, including transitive dependencies.
2. If an affected version is in use, upgrade it to the fixed version for its release line with the project's package manager, so the lockfile is regenerated. Prefer the smallest upgrade that fixes it.
3. If there is no fix, or the upgrade would break the build, do not guess: explain the risk and the safest workaround instead.
4. Run the tests and summarise what changed and why.
5. If nothing in the project is affected, say so and change nothing.

Reference: https://insights.sbomify.com/CVE-2010-2197/ (Markdown: https://insights.sbomify.com/CVE-2010-2197/index.md)
```

## Sources

- CVE record: https://www.cve.org/CVERecord?id=CVE-2010-2197
- NVD: https://nvd.nist.gov/vuln/detail/CVE-2010-2197
- OSV: https://osv.dev/vulnerability/CVE-2010-2197

---
From sbomify Insights: https://insights.sbomify.com/CVE-2010-2197/
Summaries are generated and may contain mistakes; the official description above is the record.