CVE-2026-53655
MediumCVSS 5.5Exploitation Probability (EPSS)
Low risk5th percentile - higher than 5% of all known CVEs
Summary
Vulnerability in node-tar (before 7.5.16) involves incorrect processing of PAX extended headers. The library erroneously applies the size override from a PAX header to intermediate metadata headers (e.g., GNU long-name), causing stream desynchronization compared to other tar implementations. This allows crafting an archive that is interpreted differently by different tools.
Risk Assessment
An attacker can hide a malicious file from a security scanner using one library while the extractor uses another. This leads to bypassing malware or secret detection in tar archives.
Recommendation
Immediately update node-tar to version 7.5.16 or later. If update is not possible, avoid using node-tar to process archives from untrusted sources.
Related vulnerabilities
- CVE-2026-113364Critical
Buffer overflow in the data receiving process in NEC WebSAM WinShare versions 7.5.0 and earlier, 7.6.0, and 7.7.0 through 7.7.2 on Windows allows a remote unauthenticated attacker to execute arbitrary code with SYSTEM privileges via a crafted packet with a malformed data size value in the protocol header.
- CVE-2026-113363Critical
Improper input validation in the network communication processing in NEC WebSAM WinShare versions 7.2.0 through 7.5.0, 7.6.0, and 7.7.0 through 7.7.2 on Windows allows a remote unauthenticated attacker to execute arbitrary commands with SYSTEM privileges via a crafted network packet sent to the computer running WinShare.
- CVE-2026-124560Critical
A vulnerability was found in D-Link DIR-878 version 1.20B05 in the GetCAPTCHAsetting function of bin/prog.cgi (HNAP Handler component). Manipulating the uid argument results in a heap-based buffer overflow. The attack can be initiated remotely and the exploit has been made public.
- CVE-2026-119506Critical
The Frontend Admin by DynamiApps plugin (acf-frontend-form-element) through version 3.30.1 contains an incorrect privilege assignment vulnerability. The flaw allows an attacker to escalate privileges within the WordPress site.
- CVE-2026-6715Critical
IBM Concert 1.0 through 3.0.1.1 allows an attacker to supply crafted input that is incorporated into an operating system command without adequate validation or sanitization. Successful exploitation allows remote attackers to execute arbitrary commands on the underlying operating system with the privileges of the affected service.
- CVE-2026-17466Critical
IBM Optim versions 1.0.0, 1.1.0, and 1.2.0 are vulnerable to path traversal, allowing a remote authenticated attacker to obtain sensitive information.
- CVE-2026-15266Critical
IBM Concert 1.0 through 3.0.1.1 contains components that allow potentially unsafe command execution, which could be exploited to run arbitrary system commands on the host.
- CVE-2026-114464Critical
IBM Process Mining 2.0.0 through 2.2.1 has improper access control, which could allow a remote attacker to obtain sensitive information.
- CVE-2026-107331Critical
IBM DataStage on Cloud Pak for Data 5.4.0.0 has an absolute-path traversal vulnerability that could allow a remote authenticated attacker to obtain sensitive information.
- CVE-2026-109900Critical
The Melapress Role Editor plugin for WordPress (through version 1.3.0) contains an incorrect privilege assignment vulnerability that allows privilege escalation. A low-privileged user can gain a higher level of access within the system.
Original NVD description (English source)
node-tar is a full-featured Tar for Node.js. Prior to 7.5.16, tar (node-tar) applies a PAX extended header's size= record (and other PAX overrides) to the next header entry of any type, including intermediary metadata headers such as a GNU long-name (L) or long-link (K) entry. Per POSIX pax, a PAX extended header (x) describes the next file entry, not the intermediary extension headers that may sit between the x header and the file it annotates. Because node-tar lets the PAX size override the byte length of an intervening L/K/x header, an attacker can desynchronize node-tar's stream cursor relative to every other mainstream tar implementation (GNU tar, libarchive/bsdtar, Python tarfile, and the now-fixed tar-rs / astral-tokio-tar). The result is a tar parser interpretation differential (CWE-436): a single crafted archive yields a different set of members under node-tar than under the reference tar tools. An attacker can use this to hide a member from one parser while it is visible to another, which defeats security tooling whose scanner and extractor disagree on archive contents (e.g. a malware/secret scanner that lists entries with one library while a downstream step extracts with another) This vulnerability is fixed in 7.5.16.
Vulnerability data from NVD (NIST) · CISA KEV · EPSS