# CVE-2026-73030: unearth 0.18.2 Path Traversal via Unnormalized Paths and Symlink Escape

> Attackers can exploit path traversal in unearth to write files to arbitrary locations via malicious tar archives, requiring a patch update.

- **Severity:** High 7.2 (`CVSS:4.0/AV:N/AC:L/AT:N/PR:N/UI:P/VC:N/VI:H/VA:H/SC:N/SI:N/SA:N`)
- **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:** 10 Aug 2026
- **Updated:** 11 Aug 2026
- **Also known as:** DEBIAN-CVE-2026-73030, GHSA-2fcv-9f95-p67v, UBUNTU-CVE-2026-73030, openSUSE-SU-2026:21606-1

## What is CVE-2026-73030?

CVE-2026-73030 is a high-severity path traversal vulnerability in frostming unearth, published on 10 Aug 2026. 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

unearth through 0.18.2, fixed in commit 6c78164, contains a path traversal vulnerability in the is_within_directory function that fails to normalize paths before validation, allowing ../ sequences to bypass directory containment checks. Attackers can supply malicious tar archives with symlink members or traversal sequences to write files to arbitrary filesystem locations accessible to the process.

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

## Which versions are affected by CVE-2026-73030?


| Package | Ecosystem | Affected | Fixed in |
| --- | --- | --- | --- |
| `python-unearth` | openSUSE:Leap 16.0 | All versions | 0.17.3-bp160.2.1 |

## How do I fix CVE-2026-73030?

Apply the vendor's patch.

## Is CVE-2026-73030 being exploited?

It is not confirmed as exploited in the wild, but public exploit code for CVE-2026-73030 exists.

## Fix prompt for AI coding agents

```text
Check this codebase for CVE-2026-73030 and fix it if it is affected.

What it is: CVE-2026-73030 is a high-severity path traversal vulnerability in frostming unearth, published on 10 Aug 2026. An attacker can exploit it over the internet without logging in, and only if a user opens a file or follows a link.
Exploitation: It is not confirmed as exploited in the wild, but public exploit code for CVE-2026-73030 exists.

Affected product: frostming unearth. 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-2026-73030/ (Markdown: https://insights.sbomify.com/CVE-2026-73030/index.md)
```

## Sources

- CVE record: https://www.cve.org/CVERecord?id=CVE-2026-73030
- NVD: https://nvd.nist.gov/vuln/detail/CVE-2026-73030
- OSV: https://osv.dev/vulnerability/CVE-2026-73030

---
From sbomify Insights: https://insights.sbomify.com/CVE-2026-73030/
Summaries are generated and may contain mistakes; the official description above is the record.