August 24, 2023 · Applied Cybernetics Group
CVE-2023-38831 — RARLAB WinRAR
known ransomware use
RARLAB WinRAR Code Execution Vulnerability
- Added to KEV
2023-08-24- Federal due date
2023-09-14- Vendor
- RARLAB
- Product
- WinRAR
- EPSS
- 99.9th percentile (score 0.980, as of
2026-09-16) - NVD CVSS v3.1
- 7.8 (HIGH)
- Ransomware use
- Known
- ATT&CK
- T1005 , T1041 , T1053 , T1059.004 , T1105 , T1112 , T1204 , T1486 · signal rollup
- Upstream
- https://nvd.nist.gov/vuln/detail/CVE-2023-38831
CISA short description
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.
Required action
Apply mitigations per vendor instructions or discontinue use of the product if mitigations are unavailable.
NVD description
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.