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Full vulnerability report · 2023
CVE-2023-38831High confidence

RARLAB WinRAR Code Execution Vulnerability

rarlab · winrar

7.8HighCVSS 3.1
Recommended action
Protect now

CISA confirms exploitation in the wild and lists 2023-09-14 as the remediation due date.

Fix not verified
R
Operational reassessment

Published severity in operational context

Open reassessment dashboard →
Published severityHighOperational priority:Critical, raised one band.upgradedsince 24 Aug 2023

Evidence used

  • CISA confirms exploitation in the wild.
  • A structured source references public exploit or proof-of-concept material.
  • EPSS is 99.81% for the current model date.

Compensating controls

  • Restrict local access and enforce least privilege on affected hosts.
  • Increase monitoring for the attack path and post-exploitation behaviour described in the report.

Verification

  1. Confirm that the asset runs rarlab winrar and falls inside the recorded affected range.
  2. Recheck the vendor advisory before scheduling a change because no verified fixed version is currently retained.
  3. Validate exposure, authentication requirements and compensating controls in the actual environment.
  4. Reopen this reassessment when CVSS, KEV, EPSS, exploit evidence or remediation changes.
Mitigation target: Within 3 daysRemediation target: Within 90 days

This automated reassessment organises public evidence. It does not know asset exposure, business impact or control effectiveness and does not replace CVSS or a human risk decision.

Optional official sources

National CERT insights
?CERT means Computer Emergency Response Team; CSIRT is the closely related term Computer Security Incident Response Team.

Choose official national sources for this report. Each advisory shows its original language. Your selection is remembered on this device and included in shared links.

Official European source

ENISA European Vulnerability Database

Official EUVD identifiers, advisory evidence and known-exploited context. Missing fields are not treated as evidence of low risk.

1 current
ENISA EUVD identifier

EUVD-2023-42604

CISA KEV mirrored by ENISA

RARLAB WinRAR before 6.23 allows attackers to execute arbitrary code when a user attempts to view a benign file within a ZIP archive. The issue occurs because a ZIP archive may include a benign file (such as an ordinary .JPG file) and also a folder that has the same name as the benign file, and the contents of the folder (which may include executable content) are processed during an attempt to access only the benign file. This was exploited in the wild in April through October 2023.

EUVD state
Present in the current official mapping
Known exploitation
Recorded by ENISA since 24 Aug 2023. Evidence sources: cisa_kev.
ENISA score
7.8 · CVSS 3.1
Advisory evidence
1 linked advisory record
Recommended actionProtect now

CISA confirms exploitation in the wild and lists 2023-09-14 as the remediation due date.

Fix not verified
01

What, why and how

RARLAB WinRAR contains an unspecified vulnerability that allows an attacker to execute code when a user attempts to view a benign file within a ZIP archive.

What

RARLAB WinRAR contains an unspecified vulnerability that allows an attacker to execute code when a user attempts to view a benign file within a ZIP archive.

Why

The product does not properly distinguish between different types of elements in a way that leads to insecure behavior.

How

An attacker operating through local access may attempt exploitation without authentication after a user interaction. If successful, the issue may execute code or commands in the affected security context.

What

RARLAB WinRAR contains an unspecified vulnerability that allows an attacker to execute code when a user attempts to view a benign file within a ZIP archive.

Why

The product does not properly distinguish between different types of elements in a way that leads to insecure behavior.

How

An attacker operating through local access may attempt exploitation without authentication after a user interaction. If successful, the issue may execute code or commands in the affected security context.

02

Exploit reality and attack path

CVSS severity, EPSS forecast probability, public exploit material and CISA-confirmed exploitation are separate signals.

Observed exploitation
?Confirmed exploitation and public exploit material are separate signals. Attacks can occur without public proof-of-concept or exploit code.
Confirmed in the wild

CISA added this CVE to its Known Exploited Vulnerabilities catalogue on 2023-08-24. Known ransomware campaign use is recorded.

Public PoC / exploit material
?Confirmed exploitation and public exploit material are separate signals. Attacks can occur without public proof-of-concept or exploit code.
Reference recorded

A structured CVE source labels at least one public reference as exploit material. BlackTree has not independently validated that it is safe, reliable or weaponised.

Likely attack path
local access → Insufficient Type Distinction → execute code or commands in the affected security context
Attack surface
Local
Privileges required
None: unauthenticated exploitation is possible
User interaction
Required interaction required
Attack complexity
Low: no specialised conditions are recorded
Security boundary
Unchanged: impact remains within the vulnerable component's security authority
Weakness
?CWE means Common Weakness Enumeration: a standard category for the underlying weakness.
CWE-351 ↗

CWE-351: Insufficient Type Distinction. The product does not properly distinguish between different types of elements in a way that leads to insecure behavior.

CVSS vector
?CVSS means Common Vulnerability Scoring System. The vector records the metric values used to calculate technical severity.
CVSS:3.1/AV:L/AC:L/PR:N/UI:R/S:U/C:H/I:H/A:H

Common Vulnerability Scoring System 3.1: the compact vector below is decoded into plain language.

AVLocalAttack vector: The attacker needs local access to the vulnerable system.ACLowAttack complexity: No specialised conditions are required beyond attacker-controlled input.PRNonePrivileges required: The attacker does not need an account or existing privileges.UIRequiredUser interaction: Another user must perform an action for exploitation to succeed.SUnchangedScope: The security impact remains within the vulnerable component's authority.CHighConfidentiality impact: A successful attack can cause a major loss.IHighIntegrity impact: A successful attack can cause a major loss.AHighAvailability impact: A successful attack can cause a major loss.
Post-exploitation / living off the land
After compromise, an attacker may use built-in shells, scripting engines, scheduled tasks and native network utilities for discovery, persistence or movement. This is a plausible LoTL path, not evidence that it has occurred for every attack.
UnauthenticatedRemote code executionCWE-351CISA KEVPublic exploit reference
A

Official authority intelligence

Only matched European and national findings are included. Language selectors and unavailable sources are omitted.

ENISA EUVD · EUVD-2023-42604Known-exploited evidence recorded

RARLAB WinRAR before 6.23 allows attackers to execute arbitrary code when a user attempts to view a benign file within a ZIP archive. The issue occurs because a ZIP archive may include a benign file (such as an ordinary .JPG file) and also a folder that has the same name as the benign file, and the contents of the folder (which may include executable content) are processed during an attempt to access only the benign file. This was exploited in the wild in April through October 2023.

Official EUVD record ↗
BSI · German · WID-SEC-2023-2093win.rar WinRAR: Mehrere Schwachstellen ermöglichen Codeausführung

Ein entfernter, anonymer Angreifer kann mehrere Schwachstellen in win.rar WinRAR ausnutzen, um beliebigen Programmcode auszuführen.

Official advisory ↗
Cyber Security Agency of Singapore · English · CSA-SB-20230830Security Bulletin 30 Aug 2023

The Cyber Security Agency of Singapore included this CVE in its official Security Bulletin 30 Aug 2023, published on 30 August 2023. Open the linked bulletin for the product, severity and reference information published in that issue.

Official advisory ↗
JVN iPedia · Japanese · JVNDB-2023-022788RARLAB の WinRAR における脆弱性

RARLAB の WinRAR には、不特定の脆弱性が存在します。

Official advisory ↗
KISA KrCERT/CC · Korean · KNVD-6210RARLAB 제품 보안 업데이트 권고

RARLAB의 WinRAR에서 발생하는 원격 코드 실행 취약점(CVE-2023-38831) [2]

Official advisory ↗
KISA KrCERT/CC · Korean · KNVD-6177美 CISA 발표 주요 Exploit 정보공유(Update. 2024-04-30)

#### 美 CISA 발표 주요 Exploit 정보공유(Update. 2024-04-30)2024-04-30 현재 자주 악용되고 있는 취약점 목록으로, 취약한 버전의 SW를 사용 중인 경우 긴급 패치를 권고 드립니다. * 참조 링크 : https://www.cisa.gov/known-exploited-vulnerabilities-catalog | cveID | vendorProject | vulnerabilityName | dateAdded | shortDescription | requiredAction | dueDate | | --- | --- | --- | --- | --- | --- | --- | | CVE-2024-29988 | Microsoft | Microsoft SmartScreen Prompt Security Feature Bypass Vulnerability | 2024-04-30 | Microsoft SmartScreen Prompt contains a security feature bypass vulnerability that allows an attacker to bypass the Mark of the Web (MotW) feature. This vulnerability can be chained with CVE-2023-38831 and CVE-2024-21412 to execute a malicious file. | Apply mitigations per vendor instructions or discontinue use of the product if mitigations are unavailable. | 2024-05-21 |

Official advisory ↗
KISA KrCERT/CC · Korean · KNVD-5976현재 악용되고 있는 Exploit(Update. 2023-08-24)

RARLAB WinRAR contains an unspecified vulnerability that allows an attacker to execute code when a user attempts to view a benign file within a ZIP archive.

Official advisory ↗
03

Patch and workaround

Operational remediation based on structured source evidence.

Status
?Patch availability is based on structured fixed-version fields and authoritative update references. If no fix is verified, check the vendor advisory before making a change.
Fix not verified
Affected
winrar: < 6.23
Fixed
No fixed version is explicitly recorded in the structured CVE data.
Action
No verified patch reference is present in the current structured sources. Check the vendor advisory before making a change.
Workaround
No verified workaround is recorded. Limit untrusted access and use least privilege until authoritative guidance is available.
04

Evidence and provenance

Published 23 Aug 2023 · Last source change 5 Aug 2026, 03:55 UTC · CWE-351 · Insufficient Type Distinction

CVE recordCVE.org · 5.2
CVSS sourceNIST NVD
EPSS source
?The date BlackTree first stored a score for this CVE from the daily FIRST EPSS feed.
FIRST · tracked since 2026-08-14
European sourceENISA EUVD · EUVD-2023-42604
Product sourceCISA ADP
Remediation sourceCVE/CNA references
CWE sourceCISA ADP
NVD statusNVD enriched

Core structured fields are present and their contributing authorities are shown above.

Material change intelligence

What changed after publication

View recent updates ↗
  1. Affected versionsThe structured affected or fixed version information changed.
    Before
    n/a: n/a · Fixed: No fixed version is explicitly recorded in the structured CVE data.
    After
    winrar: < 6.23 · Fixed: No fixed version is explicitly recorded in the structured CVE data.
    CISA ADP ↗
  2. Affected versionsThe structured affected or fixed version information changed.
    Before
    n/a · Fixed: No fixed version is explicitly recorded in the structured CVE data.
    After
    n/a: n/a · Fixed: No fixed version is explicitly recorded in the structured CVE data.
    CNA ↗
Material fields only · duplicate refreshes suppressed · history retained for the configured operational retention period
CVE published
Added to CISA KEV
ENISA EUVD · EUVD-2023-42604↗CISA KEV record↗Public exploit reference↗Public exploit reference↗Official CVE record (CNA and ADP data)↗NVD record↗
Technical terms and abbreviations used in this report
CVE
Common Vulnerabilities and Exposures: the public identifier for one disclosed vulnerability.
CVSS
Common Vulnerability Scoring System: a technical severity framework; it is not patching priority by itself.
EPSS
Exploit Prediction Scoring System: FIRST's estimate of the probability that exploitation activity will be observed in the next 30 days; it is a forecast, not confirmation.
CWE
Common Weakness Enumeration: the standard category describing the underlying software or hardware weakness.
CNA
CVE Numbering Authority: an organisation authorised to assign and publish CVE records.
CISA ADP
Cybersecurity and Infrastructure Security Agency Authorized Data Publisher: structured enrichment added to a CVE record.
NVD
National Vulnerability Database: NIST's enrichment service for CVE records.
CERT / CSIRT
A computer security incident response team that publishes warnings or coordinates incident response.
PoC
Proof of concept: public material that demonstrates or helps reproduce exploitation.
CSAF
Common Security Advisory Framework: a machine-readable format for security advisories.
LoTL
Living off the land: abuse of legitimate tools or system functions during an attack.
Free version - for non-commercial use only.CVE-2023-38831 · cve.blacktree.nl