# CVE-2019-9686: Path traversal in n/a

> A malicious server can exploit unsanitized Content-Disposition headers to write files anywhere, enabling arbitrary root code execution.

- **Severity:** High 8.8 (`CVSS:3.1/AV:N/AC:L/PR:N/UI:R/S:U/C:H/I:H/A:H`)
- **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:** No
- **Published:** 11 Mar 2019
- **Updated:** 4 Aug 2024
- **Also known as:** CVE-2019-1010309, GHSA-2fr8-9j8m-w8vx

## What is CVE-2019-9686?

CVE-2019-9686 is a high-severity path traversal vulnerability in n/a, published on 11 Mar 2019. 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

pacman before 5.1.3 allows directory traversal when installing a remote package via a specified URL "pacman -U <url>" due to an unsanitized file name received from a Content-Disposition header. pacman renames the downloaded package file to match the name given in this header. However, pacman did not sanitize this name, which may contain slashes, before calling rename(). A malicious server (or a network MitM if downloading over HTTP) can send a Content-Disposition header to make pacman place the file anywhere in the filesystem, potentially leading to arbitrary root code execution. Notably, this bypasses pacman's package signature checking. This occurs in curl_download_internal in lib/libalpm/dload.c.

Weakness: CWE-22 (Improper Limitation of a Pathname to a Restricted Directory)

## Which versions are affected by CVE-2019-9686?

It affects 1 product.


Products: Pacman Project Pacman.

## How do I fix CVE-2019-9686?

No fix has been published for CVE-2019-9686 yet. Limit exposure of the affected software until one is available.

## Is CVE-2019-9686 being exploited?

There is no known exploitation of CVE-2019-9686 in the wild and no public exploit code.

## Other vulnerabilities in n/a

- [CVE-2016-5434](https://insights.sbomify.com/CVE-2016-5434/): Denial of service in n/a (medium 5.5)

## Fix prompt for AI coding agents

```text
Check this codebase for CVE-2019-9686 and fix it if it is affected.

What it is: CVE-2019-9686 is a high-severity path traversal vulnerability in n/a, published on 11 Mar 2019. 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-2019-9686 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-2019-9686/ (Markdown: https://insights.sbomify.com/CVE-2019-9686/index.md)
```

## Sources

- CVE record: https://www.cve.org/CVERecord?id=CVE-2019-9686
- NVD: https://nvd.nist.gov/vuln/detail/CVE-2019-9686
- OSV: https://osv.dev/vulnerability/CVE-2019-9686

---
From sbomify Insights: https://insights.sbomify.com/CVE-2019-9686/
Summaries are generated and may contain mistakes; the official description above is the record.