Know every vulnerabilitybefore it knows you.
DevGuard continuously monitors your dependencies and alerts you when CVEs like this one affect your stack — with real-time threat intelligence built for developers.
PYSEC-2026-1967
tiny-scientistDescription
A critical path traversal vulnerability (CWE-22) has been identified in the review_paper function in backend/app.py. The vulnerability allows malicious users to access arbitrary PDF files on the server by providing crafted file paths that bypass the intended security restrictions.
Impact
This vulnerability allows attackers to:
- Read any PDF file accessible to the server process
- Potentially access sensitive documents outside the intended directory
- Perform reconnaissance on the server's file system structure
Vulnerable Code
The issue occurs in the review_paper function around line 744:
if pdf_path.startswith("/api/files/"):
# Safe path handling for API routes
relative_path = pdf_path[len("/api/files/"):]
generated_base = os.path.join(project_root, "generated")
absolute_pdf_path = os.path.join(generated_base, relative_path)
else:
absolute_pdf_path = pdf_path # VULNERABLE: Direct use of user input
Proof of Concept
curl -X POST http://localhost:5000/api/review \
-H "Content-Type: application/json" \
-d '{"pdf_path": "/etc/passwd"}'
Credit
This vulnerability was discovered and reported by Ruizhe.
The vulnerability can be exploited over the network without needing physical access. It is easy for an attacker to exploit this vulnerability. An attacker does not need any special privileges or access rights. No user interaction is needed for the attacker to exploit this vulnerability.
Exploitation attempts have been detected. Elevated vigilance and prompt remediation are advised.
The exploit probability is very low. The vulnerability is unlikely to be exploited in the next 30 days.
We did not find any exploit available. Neither in GitHub repositories nor in the Exploit-Database.
Browse More
Continuously monitor your dependencies and get alerted when vulnerabilities like this one affect your stack.
Checkout DevGuard