# CVE-2023-27534: Path traversal in https://github.com/curl/curl

> Attackers can exploit a path traversal flaw in curl's SFTP implementation to bypass filters or execute arbitrary code via crafted paths.

- **Severity:** High 8.8 (`CVSS:3.1/AV:N/AC:L/PR:L/UI:N/S:U/C:H/I:H/A:H`)
- **Exploited in the wild:** Not known
- **Login needed:** Any signed-in user
- **Attackable:** Over the internet
- **Victim action needed:** Not needed
- **Fix available:** Yes
- **Published:** 30 Mar 2023
- **Updated:** 14 Oct 2026
- **Also known as:** ALPINE-CVE-2023-27534, AZL-25784, AZL-25806, AZL-25810, AZL-25847, AZL-34607, AZL-38611, CLEANSTART-2026-OG84654, CLSA-2023-1682347721, CLSA-2023-1682348435, CLSA-2023-1682348615, CLSA-2023-1682348848, CURL-CVE-2023-27534, DEBIAN-CVE-2023-27534, DLA-3763-1, ECHO-1eee-ac31-e743, GHSA-4j25-c9rf-fp5f, JLSEC-2026-406, SUSE-SU-2024:2009-1, SUSE-SU-2026:0494-1, UBUNTU-CVE-2023-27534

## What is CVE-2023-27534?

CVE-2023-27534 is a high-severity path traversal vulnerability in Fedoraproject Fedora, published on 30 Mar 2023. Any signed-in user can exploit it over the network, with no action from the victim.

### Official description

A path traversal vulnerability exists in curl <8.0.0 SFTP implementation causes the tilde (~) character to be wrongly replaced when used as a prefix in the first path element, in addition to its intended use as the first element to indicate a path relative to the user's home directory. Attackers can exploit this flaw to bypass filtering or execute arbitrary code by crafting a path like /~2/foo while accessing a server with a specific user.

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

## Which versions are affected by CVE-2023-27534?

It affects 9 products.


| Package | Ecosystem | Affected | Fixed in |
| --- | --- | --- | --- |
| `curl` | SUSE:Linux Enterprise Micro 5.1 | All versions | 7.66.0-150200.4.72.1 |
| `curl` | SUSE:Linux Enterprise Micro 5.2 | All versions | 7.66.0-150200.4.72.1 |
| `curl` | SUSE:Linux Enterprise Server 12 SP5-LTSS | All versions | 8.0.1-11.117.1 |
| `nghttp2` | SUSE:Linux Enterprise Server 12 SP5-LTSS | All versions | 1.39.2-3.20.1 |
| `curl` | SUSE:Linux Enterprise Server LTSS Extended Security 12 SP5 | All versions | 8.0.1-11.117.1 |
| `nghttp2` | SUSE:Linux Enterprise Server LTSS Extended Security 12 SP5 | All versions | 1.39.2-3.20.1 |

Products: Broadcom Brocade Fabric Operating System Firmware, Fedoraproject Fedora, Haxx Curl, Netapp Active Iq Unified Manager, Netapp H300s Firmware, Netapp H410s Firmware, Netapp H500s Firmware, Netapp H700s Firmware, Splunk Universal Forwarder.

## How do I fix CVE-2023-27534?

Upgrade to a fixed version.

## Is CVE-2023-27534 being exploited?

It is not confirmed as exploited in the wild, but public exploit code for CVE-2023-27534 exists.

## Other vulnerabilities in Fedoraproject Fedora

- [CVE-2021-4197](https://insights.sbomify.com/CVE-2021-4197/): Privilege escalation in kernel (high 7.8)
- [CVE-2023-27538](https://insights.sbomify.com/CVE-2023-27538/): Auth bypass in https://github.com/curl/curl (high 7.7)
- [CVE-2021-27218](https://insights.sbomify.com/CVE-2021-27218/): Integer overflow in n/a (high 7.5)
- [CVE-2021-27219](https://insights.sbomify.com/CVE-2021-27219/): Integer overflow in n/a (high 7.5)
- [CVE-2019-19044](https://insights.sbomify.com/CVE-2019-19044/): Denial of service in n/a (high 7.5)

## Fix prompt for AI coding agents

```text
Check this codebase for CVE-2023-27534 and fix it if it is affected.

What it is: CVE-2023-27534 is a high-severity path traversal vulnerability in Fedoraproject Fedora, published on 30 Mar 2023. Any signed-in user can exploit it over the network, with no action from the victim.
Exploitation: It is not confirmed as exploited in the wild, but public exploit code for CVE-2023-27534 exists.

Affected product: Fedoraproject Fedora. 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-2023-27534/ (Markdown: https://insights.sbomify.com/CVE-2023-27534/index.md)
```

## Sources

- CVE record: https://www.cve.org/CVERecord?id=CVE-2023-27534
- NVD: https://nvd.nist.gov/vuln/detail/CVE-2023-27534
- OSV: https://osv.dev/vulnerability/CVE-2023-27534

---
From sbomify Insights: https://insights.sbomify.com/CVE-2023-27534/
Summaries are generated and may contain mistakes; the official description above is the record.