CVE-2023-40581 yt-dlp command injection when using `%q` in `--exec` on Windows
Remote code execution via command injection in yt-dlp on Windows when using the --exec flag with malicious metadata.
- 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
What is CVE-2023-40581?
CVE-2023-40581 is a high-severity command injection vulnerability in yt-dlp, published on 25 Sep 2023. 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
yt-dlp is a youtube-dl fork with additional features and fixes. yt-dlp allows the user to provide shell command lines to be executed at various stages in its download steps through the `--exec` flag. This flag allows output template expansion in its argument, so that metadata values may be used in the shell commands. The metadata fields can be combined with the `%q` conversion, which is intended to quote/escape these values so they can be safely passed to the shell. However, the escaping used for `cmd` (the shell used by Python's `subprocess` on Windows) does not properly escape special characters, which can allow for remote code execution if `--exec` is used directly with maliciously crafted remote data. This vulnerability only impacts `yt-dlp` on Windows, and the vulnerability is present regardless of whether `yt-dlp` is run from `cmd` or from `PowerShell`. Support for output template expansion in `--exec`, along with this vulnerable behavior, was added to `yt-dlp` in version 2021.04.11. yt-dlp version 2023.09.24 fixes this issue by properly escaping each special character. `\n` will be replaced by `\r` as no way of escaping it has been found. It is recommended to upgrade yt-dlp to version 2023.09.24 as soon as possible. Also, always be careful when using --exec, because while this specific vulnerability has been patched, using unvalidated input in shell commands is inherently dangerous. For Windows users who are not able to upgrade: 1. Avoid using any output template expansion in --exec other than {} (filepath). 2. If expansion in --exec is needed, verify the fields you are using do not contain ", | or &. 3. Instead of using --exec, write the info json and load the fields from it instead.
Weakness: CWE-78
Which versions are affected by CVE-2023-40581?
3 open source packages ship an affected version, including yt-dlp. It affects 1 product.
| Package | Affected | Fixed in |
|---|---|---|
yt-dlp PyPI | From 2021.04.11 | 2023.09.24 |
yt-dlp PyPI | From 2021.04.11 | 2023.09.24 |
yt-dlp PyPI | From 2021.04.11 | 2023.09.24 |
Products include Yt-Dlp Project Yt-Dlp.
How do I fix CVE-2023-40581?
Upgrade yt-dlp to 2023.09.24 or later.
Upgrade, and pass arguments to programs as a list instead of through a shell. More about Command injection.
Is CVE-2023-40581 being exploited?
There is no known exploitation of CVE-2023-40581 in the wild and no public exploit code.
Other vulnerabilities in yt-dlp
- CVE-2026-26331 yt-dlp: Arbitrary Command Injection when using the `--netrc-cmd` option
- CVE-2024-22423 yt-dlp `--exec` command injection when using `%q` in yt-dlp on Windows
- CVE-2026-50023 yt-dlp: Dangerous file type creation via insufficient filename sanitization (Bypass of CVE-2024-38519)
- CVE-2026-50574 yt-dlp: Arbitrary code execution via manifest downloads with aria2c
- CVE-2026-55404 yt-dlp: Downstream command injection via improper sanitization of yt-dlp --write-link output
Sources
Also known as GHSA-42h4-v29r-42qg, PYSEC-2026-2064.