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NVD / CVE Program· CNA checkpoint

CVE-2018-20250: In WinRAR versions prior to and including 5.61, There is path traversal vulnerability when crafting the filename field of the ACE format (in

Noroxi assessment

Priority: Now (action score 90/100)

  • CISA has confirmed exploitation in the wild (Feb 15, 2022); it is known to be used in ransomware campaigns. Remediation deadline for US federal agencies: Aug 15, 2022.
  • A ready-made attack module is public (Metasploit); exploiting it takes no special expertise.
  • Probability of exploitation in the next 30 days: 96% (FIRST EPSS); higher than 99.8% of all records.
  • Someone with local access to the system can trigger it. No account or password is required. A user must open a link or visit a page. No special conditions are required; it is repeatable.
  • According to the record, no fixed version is available yet.

Patch today or shut off access. Until a fix is released, restrict access to the affected component and follow the vendor's advisory.

Generated automatically from the record's data: CVSS (NVD and CNA), CISA KEV and SSVC, FIRST EPSS, exploit sources, fixed versions. How we calculate it

Primary sources: NVD · CVE.org · CISA KEV · FIRST EPSS

In WinRAR versions prior to and including 5.61, There is path traversal vulnerability when crafting the filename field of the ACE format (in UNACEV2.dll). When the filename field is manipulated with specific patterns, the destination (extraction) folder is ignored, thus treating the filename as an absolute path.

HighCVSS 7.8 · v3.1KEVWeaponized No fix recorded
Published
Feb 5, 2019
Updated
Aug 13, 2026
EPSS
96.0% · 99th percentile

Report tools

JSON

Action score

90

Now

Patch today or shut off access.

CVSS
31 / 40 · 7.8 / 10
CISA KEV
30 / 30 · Listed
EPSS
29 / 30 · 96.0%

CISA SSVC decision

Exploitation
active
Automatable
no
Technical impact
total

Vulnrichment: CISA's decision-tree inputs.

Actively exploited in the wild

CISA added this to its Known Exploited Vulnerabilities catalog on Feb 15, 2022. That signals real attacks, not theory.

Remediation deadline for US federal agencies: Aug 15, 2022.

Known to be used in ransomware campaigns.

Get told when this record changes

  • In CISA KEV: exploitation in the wild confirmed
  • Weaponized exploit exists
  • No fixed version yet

If any of these changes, we'll tell you in the daily email digest.

Follow CVE-2018-20250

When you'll hear from us

  • when it enters CISA KEV
  • when exploit code appears or is weaponized
  • when the record is updated (including a fixed version)
  • when EPSS rises 20 points in a week

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Noroxi analysis

What does it mean in your environment?

The assessment above is generated automatically from the record's data; it doesn't know your environment. Our team verifies on your systems whether this vulnerability is actually exploitable and which mitigation is enough.

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Affected systems

Is your version affected?

Pick the product and type the version you run. It's compared with this record's version ranges in your browser; the version isn't sent anywhere.

VendorProduct
rarlabwinrar

Affected versions

NVD version ranges (for catalog products). Add the product to your stack with a version and matching uses these.

  • rarlab winrarup to 5.61 inclusive

Versions reported by the vendor

Affected version ranges reported by the assigning authority (checkpoint). Independent of NVD's CPE analysis and usually ahead of it.

  • Check Point Software Technologies Ltd. WinRAR

    • All versions prior and including 5.61affected

Same product

rarlab: all records

Other highest-scoring records for the same primary product.

  • CVE-2025-8088Path traversal vulnerability in WinRARKEV
    91Now
  • CVE-2023-38831RARLAB WinRAR before 6.23 allows attackers to execute arbitrary code when a user attempts to view a benign file within a ZIP archive.KEV
    91Now
  • CVE-2025-6218RARLAB WinRAR Directory Traversal Remote Code Execution VulnerabilityKEV
    88Now

Published before and after this one in the same product

  • ← EarlierCVE-2008-7144Sep 1, 2009 · Multiple unspecified vulnerabilities in RARLAB WinRAR before 3.71 have unknown impact and attack vectors related to crafted (1) ACE, (2) ARJ
    41Plan
  • ← EarlierCVE-2015-5663Dec 30, 2015 · The file-execution functionality in WinRAR before 5.30 beta 5 allows local users to gain privileges via a Trojan horse file with a name simi
    29Monitor
  • Later →CVE-2018-20251Feb 5, 2019 · In WinRAR versions prior to and including 5.61, there is path traversal vulnerability when crafting the filename field of the ACE format.
    31Monitor

Remediation

Which version to upgrade to

Fix versions compiled from the vendor, package registries and Microsoft. Verify the vendor's note before upgrading.

No fix version is recorded for this entry. Check the references for vendor advisories.

Exploit status

Weaponized

A ready exploit tool or active in-the-wild use is known for this vulnerability. This should be your top priority.

Evidence

  • Metasploit module ×1
  • Exploit-DB entry ×3
  • Proof-of-concept repository on GitHub ×19

Noroxi does not host or link to exploit code. Metasploit module names and Nuclei template ids are shown (names, not code); Exploit-DB entries and PoC repositories are given as counts only.

Public exploit evidence
SourceKindDate
Exploit-DB entrylocal2019-04-25
Exploit-DB entrylocal2019-04-25
Exploit-DB entrylocal2019-02-22
Metasploit moduleexploit/windows/fileformat/winrar_aceRARLAB WinRAR ACE Format Input Validation Remote Code Executionexploit2019-02-05
Proof-of-concept repository on GitHubstars:4932019-02-22
Proof-of-concept repository on GitHubstars:262019-02-22
Proof-of-concept repository on GitHubstars:02019-02-22
Proof-of-concept repository on GitHubstars:02019-02-22
Proof-of-concept repository on GitHubstars:212019-02-23
Proof-of-concept repository on GitHubstars:22019-02-28
Proof-of-concept repository on GitHubstars:12019-03-04
Proof-of-concept repository on GitHubstars:22019-03-05

Research context

For pentesters and researchers: attack profile, score disagreement, timeline, patch commits, credits, variant and chain candidates, bug bounty scope. All derived from existing data; no exploit code.

Timeline

From publication to today: proof of concept, Metasploit module, CISA KEV and fix record. Dates are as reported by the sources.

  1. Metasploit-1 d
  2. Published
  3. First PoC+16 d
  4. CISA KEV+1105 d
  5. TodayOct 29, 2026+2823 d
EPSS, last 120 days

FIRST EPSS daily score; only changes of 0.01 or more are recorded (step chart).

Patch and commit links

Commit, PR and diff links among the references. A starting point for patch-diffing and variant hunting; fixes, not exploits.

No commit or PR link among the references.

Credits

All researchers

Finders, reporters and analysts named in the CNA record. Click a name for that researcher’s other records.

No credits in the CNA record.

Variant candidates

Same product, same weakness class, within 18 months. If the patch missed the root cause, the sibling bug is here.

No nightly-computed relations.

Chain candidates

An authentication bypass and a privilege-requiring bug in the same product, published close together: combined they may become an unauthenticated path.

—

Bug bounty scope

No known public program.

Source: bounty-targets-data (public HackerOne, Bugcrowd, Intigriti, YesWeHack listings).

Technical details

Attack conditions

  • Someone with local access to the system can trigger it.
  • No account or password is required.
  • A user must open a link or visit a page.
  • No special conditions are required; it is repeatable.

If successful

Confidentiality
high · data can be read
Integrity
high · data or configuration can be modified
Availability
high · the service can be disrupted
Attack vector
Local
Attack complexity
Low
Privileges required
None
User interaction
Required
Scope
Unchanged
Confidentiality impact
High
Integrity impact
High
Availability impact
High

Weakness class (CWE)

CWE-36 · Absolute Path Traversal

CVSS vector

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

nvd-primary

Attack context

MITRE CAPEC attack patterns and ATT&CK techniques for this weakness class (CWE). A starting point for detection rules and threat hunting.

Attack patterns (CAPEC)

ATT&CK techniques

—

Change log

No changes recorded on tracked fields yet. Score, KEV, exploit maturity and fix status changes appear here.

References

Show all references (3 more)

Vendor advisories and official records. Exploit/PoC links are deliberately left out.

All records