CVE-2026-26960 PUBLISHED

node-tar has Arbitrary File Read/Write via Hardlink Target Escape Through Symlink Chain in Extraction

Assigner: GitHub_M
Reserved: 16.02.2026 Published: 20.02.2026 Updated: 20.02.2026

node-tar is a full-featured Tar for Node.js. When using default options in versions 7.5.7 and below, an attacker-controlled archive can create a hardlink inside the extraction directory that points to a file outside the extraction root, enabling arbitrary file read and write as the extracting user. Severity is high because the primitive bypasses path protections and turns archive extraction into a direct filesystem access primitive. This issue has been fixed in version 7.5.8.

Metrics

CVSS Vector: CVSS:3.1/AV:L/AC:L/PR:N/UI:R/S:U/C:H/I:H/A:N
CVSS Score: 7.1

Product Status

Vendor isaacs
Product node-tar
Versions
  • Version < 7.5.8 is affected

References

Problem Types

  • CWE-22: Improper Limitation of a Pathname to a Restricted Directory ('Path Traversal') CWE