# CVE-2010-2253: Path traversal in n/a

> Remote servers can overwrite dotfiles via crafted filenames in redirects or headers, potentially leading to arbitrary code execution.

- **Severity:** Medium 6.8 (`AV:N/AC:M/Au:N/C:P/I:P/A:P`)
- **Exploited in the wild:** Not known
- **Login needed:** Not needed
- **Attackable:** Over the internet
- **Victim action needed:** A user has to click or open something
- **Fix available:** Yes
- **Published:** 6 Jul 2010
- **Updated:** 7 Aug 2024
- **Also known as:** DEBIAN-CVE-2010-2253, GHSA-mcrm-9w8r-c6w8

## What is CVE-2010-2253?

CVE-2010-2253 is a medium-severity path traversal vulnerability in n/a, published on 6 Jul 2010. An attacker can exploit it over the internet without logging in, and only if a user opens a file or follows a link.

### Official description

lwp-download in libwww-perl before 5.835 does not reject downloads to filenames that begin with a . (dot) character, which allows remote servers to create or overwrite files via (1) a 3xx redirect to a URL with a crafted filename or (2) a Content-Disposition header that suggests a crafted filename, and possibly execute arbitrary code as a consequence of writing to a dotfile in a home directory.

Weakness: CWE-20 (Improper Input Validation)

## Which versions are affected by CVE-2010-2253?

It affects 2 products.


Products: Gisle Aas Libwww-Perl, Search.cpan Libwww-Perl.

## How do I fix CVE-2010-2253?

Upgrade to a fixed version.

## Is CVE-2010-2253 being exploited?

There is no known exploitation of CVE-2010-2253 in the wild and no public exploit code.

## Other vulnerabilities in n/a

- [CVE-2011-0633](https://insights.sbomify.com/CVE-2011-0633/): Security feature bypass in n/a (medium 4.3)

## Fix prompt for AI coding agents

```text
Check this codebase for CVE-2010-2253 and fix it if it is affected.

What it is: CVE-2010-2253 is a medium-severity path traversal vulnerability in n/a, published on 6 Jul 2010. An attacker can exploit it over the internet without logging in, and only if a user opens a file or follows a link.
Exploitation: There is no known exploitation of CVE-2010-2253 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-2010-2253/ (Markdown: https://insights.sbomify.com/CVE-2010-2253/index.md)
```

## Sources

- CVE record: https://www.cve.org/CVERecord?id=CVE-2010-2253
- NVD: https://nvd.nist.gov/vuln/detail/CVE-2010-2253
- OSV: https://osv.dev/vulnerability/CVE-2010-2253

---
From sbomify Insights: https://insights.sbomify.com/CVE-2010-2253/
Summaries are generated and may contain mistakes; the official description above is the record.