Electron vulnerable to out-of-package code execution when launched with arbitrary cwd

Exploitation

No confirmed exploitation recorded. Patch Next marks exploitation only from CISA KEV.

CVSS

6.1 · CVSS:3.1/AV:L/AC:L/PR:L/UI:R/S:U/C:L/I:H/A:L

EPSS

• CVE-2023-39956: 0.49% estimated exploitation activity in the next 30 days; percentile 42.26 (FIRST EPSS, 2026-11-03). This is a model estimate, not proof of exploitation or customer exposure.

As published by the source; long descriptions are shortened.

Impact Apps that are launched as command line executables are impacted. E.g. if your app exposes itself in the path as myapp --help Specifically this issue can only be exploited if the following conditions are met: Your app is launched with an attacker-controlled working directory The attacker has the ability to write files to that working directory This makes the risk quite low, in fact normally issues of this kind are considered outside of our threat model as similar to Chromium we exclude Physically Local Attacks but given the ability for this issue to bypass certain protections like ASAR Integrity it is being treated with higher importance. Please bear this in mind when reporting similar issues in the future. Workarounds There are no app side workarounds, you must update to a patched version of Electron. Fixed Versions 26.0.0-beta.13 25.5.0 24.7.1 23.3.13 22.3.19 For more information If you have any questions or comments about this advisory, email us at security@electronjs.org

Published by the source

6 Sep 2023, 19:51 UTC

Last modified by the source

10 Sep 2026, 03:49 UTC

Source last checked

26 Oct 2026, 12:27 UTC

1. Revision 2 · amended · 26 Oct 2026

   Amended from ghsa record GHSA-7x97-j373-85x5

2. Revision 1 · created · 24 Oct 2026

   Published from osv record GHSA-7x97-j373-85x5

Preview the exact text before you copy it. Commands are read-only suggestions; review them before running anything.

# Patch Next advisory brief: CVE-2023-39956

Advisory: Electron vulnerable to out-of-package code execution when launched with arbitrary cwd
IDs: CVE-2023-39956, GHSA-7x97-j373-85x5
Record: https://patchnext.com/advisories/cve-2023-39956 (revision 2, source checked 26 Oct 2026, 12:27 UTC)
Inventory: none attached. This brief comes from a public page and does not say whether any deployment is affected.
Severity: Medium (CVSS 6.1)
Exploitation: no confirmed exploitation recorded. Patch Next confirms exploitation only from CISA KEV.
Vendor response: Vendor fix available; fixed versions by package: electron 26.0.0-beta.13, 25.5.0, 24.7.1, 23.3.13, 22.3.19. A vendor fix does not mean a deployment is fixed.

## Affected components
- npm electron: affected < 22.3.19; >= 23.0.0-alpha.1, < 23.3.13; >= 24.0.0-alpha.1, < 24.7.1; >= 25.0.0-alpha.1, < 25.5.0; >= 26.0.0-alpha.1, < 26.0.0-beta.13; fixed in 23.3.13, 25.5.0, 24.7.1, 26.0.0-beta.13, 22.3.19

## Suggested inspection (read-only)
- `npm ls electron --all`: lists every installed copy and version, including transitive ones. Run in the project root after `npm ci`.

## Supported action
Upgrade each affected component to a fixed version on its release line. For a transitive dependency, upgrade the parent package or add an override or constraint, then regenerate the lockfile. Redeploy every environment that ran an affected version.

## Required regression checks
- Run the test suite and a production build.
- Exercise the features that depend on electron.
- Repeat the inspection and confirm that only fixed versions remain installed.

## Rollback considerations
- Keep the previous lockfile and deployment artifact. Rolling back reinstates the vulnerable version, so apply any documented mitigation while you fix forward.

## Unresolved questions
- Which deployments run an affected version?
- Exploitation status can change. Check again before lowering the priority.
- Mark the work resolved only after the fixed version is verified in production.

## Sources
- Verified: https://osv.dev/vulnerability/GHSA-7x97-j373-85x5 (OSV record GHSA-7x97-j373-85x5 lists affected ranges: npm electron >=0 =23.0.0-alpha.1 =24.0.0-alpha.1 =25.0.0-alpha.1 =26.0.0-alpha.1 <26.0.0-beta.13 (fixed))
- Verified: https://github.com/advisories/GHSA-7x97-j373-85x5 (GitHub-reviewed advisory GHSA-7x97-j373-85x5 lists affected ranges: npm electron >=0 =23.0.0-alpha.1 =24.0.0-alpha.1 =25.0.0-alpha.1 =26.0.0-alpha.1 <26.0.0-beta.13)

Commands are suggestions: review each one before running it.