# CVE-2017-6543: Path traversal in n/a

> Remote authenticated attackers can upload files to arbitrary locations on Windows systems, leading to privilege escalation and potential code execution.

- **Severity:** High 7.3 (`CVSS:3.0/AV:L/AC:L/PR:L/UI:R/S:U/C:H/I:H/A:H`)
- **Exploited in the wild:** Not known
- **Login needed:** Any signed-in user
- **Attackable:** Local or same network only
- **Victim action needed:** A user has to click or open something
- **Fix available:** No
- **Published:** 8 Mar 2017
- **Updated:** 5 Aug 2024
- **Also known as:** GHSA-qprc-f7qc-63gc

## What is CVE-2017-6543?

CVE-2017-6543 is a high-severity path traversal vulnerability in Tenable Nessus, published on 8 Mar 2017. 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

Tenable Nessus before 6.10.2 (as used alone or in Tenable Appliance before 4.5.0) was found to contain a flaw that allowed a remote, authenticated attacker to upload a crafted file that could be written to anywhere on the system. This could be used to subsequently gain elevated privileges on the system (e.g., after a reboot). This issue only affects installations on Windows.

## Which versions are affected by CVE-2017-6543?

It affects 2 products.


Products: Tenable Appliance, Tenable Nessus.

## How do I fix CVE-2017-6543?

No fix has been published for CVE-2017-6543 yet. Limit exposure of the affected software until one is available.

## Is CVE-2017-6543 being exploited?

There is no known exploitation of CVE-2017-6543 in the wild and no public exploit code.

## Other vulnerabilities in Tenable Nessus

- [CVE-2017-8051](https://insights.sbomify.com/CVE-2017-8051/): Command injection in n/a (critical 9.8)
- [CVE-2017-8050](https://insights.sbomify.com/CVE-2017-8050/): Missing authorization in n/a (high 7.5)
- [CVE-2018-1142](https://insights.sbomify.com/CVE-2018-1142/): Cross-site scripting in Tenable Appliance (medium 5.4)

## Fix prompt for AI coding agents

```text
Check this codebase for CVE-2017-6543 and fix it if it is affected.

What it is: CVE-2017-6543 is a high-severity path traversal vulnerability in Tenable Nessus, published on 8 Mar 2017. 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-2017-6543 in the wild and no public exploit code.

Affected product: Tenable Nessus. 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-2017-6543/ (Markdown: https://insights.sbomify.com/CVE-2017-6543/index.md)
```

## Sources

- CVE record: https://www.cve.org/CVERecord?id=CVE-2017-6543
- NVD: https://nvd.nist.gov/vuln/detail/CVE-2017-6543
- OSV: https://osv.dev/vulnerability/CVE-2017-6543

---
From sbomify Insights: https://insights.sbomify.com/CVE-2017-6543/
Summaries are generated and may contain mistakes; the official description above is the record.