Raw vector
CVSS:3.1/AV:N/AC:L/PR:N/UI:N/S:U/C:H/I:H/A:HCVSS and EPSS are reproduced from their sources (NVD, FIRST EPSS). Risk Priority is our own derived reading, not an NVD score.
Summary
CVE-2025-64712 is a critical-severity Path Traversal (CWE-22) vulnerability in Unstructured Unstructured. Its CVSS base score is 9.8 (Critical).
Operationally, exploitation aligns with the MITRE ATT&CK technique Data from Local System (T1005); ranked at the 47th percentile by exploit likelihood (below the median); it is not currently listed in the CISA KEV catalog.
The strongest mitigations our analysis identified map to AC-3 (Access Enforcement) and SI-10 (Information Input Validation) — see the control section below for these in your framework.
Deeper analysis AI-assisted summary
Synthesised by an AI model from the NVD description and linked references — a reading aid, not an authoritative source.
CVE-2025-64712 is a path traversal vulnerability (CWE-22, CWE-73) in the partition_msg function of the unstructured open-source library, which provides components for ingesting and preprocessing images and text documents such as PDFs, HTML, and Word files. Versions prior to 0.18.18 are affected, enabling attackers to write or overwrite arbitrary files on the filesystem when processing malicious MSG files containing attachments. The vulnerability carries a CVSS v3.1 base score of 9.8 (Critical), reflecting network accessibility, low attack complexity, no privileges or user interaction required, and high impacts on confidentiality, integrity, and availability.
Any unauthenticated remote attacker can exploit this flaw by supplying a specially crafted MSG file to an application using the vulnerable library for document processing. Successful exploitation allows arbitrary file writes or overwrites on the target filesystem, potentially leading to remote code execution, data corruption, or persistence if critical files like configuration or executables are targeted.
The issue was addressed in unstructured version 0.18.18 via a patch detailed in the commit at https://github.com/Unstructured-IO/unstructured/commit/b01d35b2373fd087d2e15162b9c021663c97155d. Additional guidance is available in the GitHub security advisory at https://github.com/Unstructured-IO/unstructured/security/advisories/GHSA-gm8q-m8mv-jj5m, recommending immediate upgrades to the patched version and validation of input files.
OWASP Top 10 for Web (2025)
EU & UK References
- 🇪🇺 ENISA EUVD: EUVD-2025-206785
Vulnerability Data
The unstructured library provides open-source components for ingesting and pre-processing images and text documents, such as PDFs, HTML, Word docs, and many more. Prior to version 0.18.18, a path traversal vulnerability in the partition_msg function allows an attacker to write…
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or overwrite arbitrary files on the filesystem when processing malicious MSG files with attachments. This issue has been patched in version 0.18.18.
- CWE(s)
Related Threats
MITRE ATT&CK Enterprise Techniques
CVEs Like This One
Affected Assets
Mitigating Controls
Control response
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V5.3.2
Mitigating Controls (NIST 800-53 r5) AI
Enforces the intended directory access authorizations that path traversal would otherwise bypass.
Input validation directly neutralizes special path elements before pathname construction occurs.
Least privilege reduces the impact of any unauthorized file access obtained via traversal.
Mitigating Controls (NIST CSF 2.0) AI
Derived directly from the weakness types (CWEs) cited in the NVD entry via our AI-authored CWE→CSF cross-walk (authority under review) — links open the control.
Secure SDLC practices include input validation and path sanitization that eliminate this weakness.
Least-privilege file authorization directly limits damage from externally controlled paths.
Patching/maintenance can remediate known path-traversal flaws in deployed software (partial prevention of exploitability) but does nothing to stop the coding defect from being introduced in the first place.
Mitigating Controls (ISO/IEC 27001:2022 Annex A) AI
Derived directly from the weakness types (CWEs) cited in the NVD entry via our AI-authored CWE→ISO cross-walk (authority under review) — links open the control.
Security testing in development catches path traversal via static/dynamic analysis.
Secure SDLC mandates input validation and path sanitization that directly prevent path traversal.
Application security requirements include rules for safe file handling and canonicalization.
Secure architecture principles require least-privilege file access and directory isolation.
Secure coding standards explicitly forbid unsafe path construction and mandate safe APIs.
Information access restriction limits which files an application may read or write.