4.5
MEDIUM CVSS 3.1
CVE-2026-113716
virtualenv: Builtin creation follows linked environment directories
Description

virtualenv is a tool for creating isolated virtual python environments. Prior to 21.14.9, the builtin creator calls ensure_dir() for executable, library, and package directories, and ensure_dir() accepts an existing symlink to a directory because exists() follows it. Interpreter creation, seed installation, and activation generation then write through the linked parent outside the requested destination when another local account prepared the tree and the invoking user can access the target. The --clear option removes the planted tree first, while ordinary creation reaches it; arbitrary attacker-selected output bytes are not established. This issue is fixed in version 21.14.9.

INFO

Published Date :

Oct. 20, 2026, 8:17 p.m.

Last Modified :

Oct. 22, 2026, 4:47 p.m.

Remotely Exploit :

No
Affected Products

The following products are affected by CVE-2026-113716 vulnerability. Even if cvefeed.io is aware of the exact versions of the products that are affected, the information is not represented in the table below.

ID Vendor Product Action
1 Virtualenv virtualenv
CVSS Scores
The Common Vulnerability Scoring System is a standardized framework for assessing the severity of vulnerabilities in software and systems. We collect and displays CVSS scores from various sources for each CVE.
Score Version Severity Vector Exploitability Score Impact Score Source
CVSS 134c704f-9b21-4f2e-91b3-4a467353bcc0
CVSS 3.1 MEDIUM MITRE-CVE
CVSS 3.1 MEDIUM [email protected]
Solution
Update virtualenv to version 21.14.9 or later to fix the directory traversal vulnerability.
  • Update virtualenv to version 21.14.9 or newer.
  • Verify installation of the updated version.
  • Recreate virtual environments if they were affected.
References to Advisories, Solutions, and Tools
CWE - Common Weakness Enumeration

While CVE identifies specific instances of vulnerabilities, CWE categorizes the common flaws or weaknesses that can lead to vulnerabilities. CVE-2026-113716 is associated with the following CWEs:

Common Attack Pattern Enumeration and Classification (CAPEC)

Common Attack Pattern Enumeration and Classification (CAPEC) stores attack patterns, which are descriptions of the common attributes and approaches employed by adversaries to exploit the CVE-2026-113716 weaknesses.

We scan GitHub repositories to detect new proof-of-concept exploits. Following list is a collection of public exploits and proof-of-concepts, which have been published on GitHub (sorted by the most recently updated).

Results are limited to the first 15 repositories due to potential performance issues.

The following list is the news that have been mention CVE-2026-113716 vulnerability anywhere in the article.

The following table lists the changes that have been made to the CVE-2026-113716 vulnerability over time.

Vulnerability history details can be useful for understanding the evolution of a vulnerability, and for identifying the most recent changes that may impact the vulnerability's severity, exploitability, or other characteristics.

  • CVE Modified by 134c704f-9b21-4f2e-91b3-4a467353bcc0

    Oct. 21, 2026

    Action Type Old Value New Value
    Added SSVC {'id': 'CVE-2026-113716', 'role': 'CISA Coordinator', 'options': [{'exploitation': 'none'}, {'automatable': 'no'}, {'technicalImpact': 'partial'}], 'version': '2.0.3', 'timestamp': '2026-10-21T14:24:41.786206Z'}
  • New CVE Received by [email protected]

    Oct. 20, 2026

    Action Type Old Value New Value
    Added Description virtualenv is a tool for creating isolated virtual python environments. Prior to 21.14.9, the builtin creator calls ensure_dir() for executable, library, and package directories, and ensure_dir() accepts an existing symlink to a directory because exists() follows it. Interpreter creation, seed installation, and activation generation then write through the linked parent outside the requested destination when another local account prepared the tree and the invoking user can access the target. The --clear option removes the planted tree first, while ordinary creation reaches it; arbitrary attacker-selected output bytes are not established. This issue is fixed in version 21.14.9.
    Added CVSS V3.1 AV:L/AC:H/PR:L/UI:N/S:U/C:L/I:L/A:L
    Added CWE CWE-59
    Added Affected New affected value received. <a href="https://github.com/CVEProject/cvelistV5/blob/main/cves/2026/113xxx/CVE-2026-113716.json">CVE-2026-113716</a>
    Added Reference https://github.com/pypa/virtualenv/commit/554d9f9d4f7758f5cf53f993031e29787f1f74c5
    Added Reference https://github.com/pypa/virtualenv/pull/3429
    Added Reference https://github.com/pypa/virtualenv/releases/tag/21.14.9
    Added Reference https://github.com/pypa/virtualenv/security/advisories/GHSA-cw65-gx24-rc82
EPSS is a daily estimate of the probability of exploitation activity being observed over the next 30 days. Following chart shows the EPSS score history of the vulnerability.