Path Traversal in Apache Pdfbox
CVE-2026-23907
This issue affects the ExtractEmbeddedFiles example in Apache PDFBox: from 2.0.24 through 2.0.35, from 3.0.0 through 3.0.6. The ExtractEmbeddedFiles example contains a path traversal vulnerability (CWE-22) because the filename that is obtained from PDComplexFileSpecification.getFilename() is appended to the extraction path. Users who have copied this example into their production code should review it to ensure that the extraction path is acceptable. The example has been changed accordingly, now the initial path and the extraction paths are converted into canonical paths and it is verified that extraction path contains the initial path. The documentation has also been adjusted.
Vulnerability class: Path Traversal (Directory Traversal)
EPSS: 0.009 (57.5th percentile) — read the EPSS interpretation.
CVSS v3 metric
CVSS v3 base score 5.3 (Medium). Vector: CVSS:3.1/AV:N/AC:L/PR:N/UI:N/S:U/C:L/I:N/A:N.
Affected products
- Apache Pdfbox
- Apache Software Foundation Pdfbox Examples — versions 2.0.24, 3.0.0
Weakness classification (CWE)
Public proof-of-concept exploits
References
- security@apache.org (Not Applicable)
- security@apache.org (vendor-advisory, Mailing List, Vendor Advisory)
- af854a3a-2127-422b-91ae-364da2661108 (Mailing List, Third Party Advisory)
Frequently asked questions
- What is CVE-2026-23907?
- CVE-2026-23907 is a medium-severity vulnerability in Apache Pdfbox, classified under Path Traversal. CVSS score: 5.3/10. Published 2026-03-10.
- How severe is CVE-2026-23907?
- Medium severity. CVSS v3 base score is 5.3 out of 10.
- Is CVE-2026-23907 known to be exploited?
- 1 public proof-of-concept repositories are indexed. Not currently listed in the CISA KEV catalog.