CVE-2023-47039: Perl: perl for windows binary hijacking vulnerability

Severity: high (CVSS 7.8 v3.1)
Exploited in the wild: not listed in CISA KEV
EPSS: 0.4% probability of exploitation in the next 30 days
Public exploit or detection template: none known
Published: 2024-01-02 · updated 2026-06-17
Weakness: CWE-122

Description

A vulnerability was found in Perl. This security issue occurs while Perl for Windows relies on the system path environment variable to find the shell (`cmd.exe`). When running an executable that uses the Windows Perl interpreter, Perl attempts to find and execute `cmd.exe` within the operating system. However, due to path search order issues, Perl initially looks for cmd.exe in the current working directory. This flaw allows an attacker with limited privileges to place`cmd.exe` in locations with weak permissions, such as `C:\ProgramData`. By doing so, arbitrary code can be executed when an administrator attempts to use this executable from these compromised locations.

Affected products

perl: before 5.32.1 — fixed in 5.32.1

How to fix

Upgrade to a fixed version: perl 5.32.1. Check the vendor advisory for mitigations.

References

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