CVE-2026-37531
Path Traversal in Linuxfoundation Automotive Grade Linux ≤ 17.1.12
Raw vector
CVSS:3.1/AV:N/AC:L/PR:N/UI:N/S:U/C:H/I:H/A:HSummary
CVE-2026-37531 is a critical-severity Path Traversal (CWE-22) vulnerability in Linuxfoundation Automotive Grade Linux. Its CVSS base score is 9.8 (Critical).
Operationally, exploitation aligns with the MITRE ATT&CK technique Path Interception (T1034); ranked in the top 50% of CVEs by exploit likelihood; it is not currently listed in the CISA KEV catalog.
The strongest mitigations our analysis identified map to AC-25 (Reference Monitor) and AC-3 (Access Enforcement) — 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-2026-37531 is a Zip Slip path traversal vulnerability (CWE-22) combined with a time-of-check-to-time-of-use (TOCTOU) race condition (CWE-367) affecting AGL app-framework-main versions through 17.1.12. The issue resides in the widget installation flow, where the is_valid_filename function in wgtpkg-zip.c validates ZIP entry names but only blocks absolute paths, failing to check for dot notation directory traversal sequences like "../". The zread extraction function then uses openat(workdirfd, filename, O_CREAT), which resolves these relative to the working directory and permits writing files anywhere on the filesystem. Critically, in the install_widget function of wgtpkg-install.c, extraction occurs before signature verification via check_all_signatures; if verification fails, the cleanup routine (remove_workdir) only removes files from the temporary working directory, leaving traversed files in place permanently.
The vulnerability carries a CVSS v3.1 base score of 9.8 (AV:N/AC:L/PR:N/UI:N/S:U/C:H/I:H/A:H), indicating it is exploitable remotely by unauthenticated attackers with low complexity and no user interaction required. An attacker can craft a malicious widget ZIP package containing traversal payloads in filenames and deliver it for installation via the app framework. During extraction, files are written to arbitrary locations before any signature checks, enabling full filesystem compromise including high confidentiality, integrity, and availability impacts such as overwriting critical system files, planting malware, or exfiltrating data.
References include the AGL app-framework-main source repository on Gerrit for potential patches and a GitHub Gist disclosure detailing the vulnerability. No specific mitigation guidance is provided in the available details, so practitioners should review the source code and disclosure for updates or workarounds, such as validating filenames more rigorously or deferring extraction until after signature verification.
OWASP Top 10 for Web (2025)
EU & UK References
- 🇪🇺 ENISA EUVD: EUVD-2026-26685
Vulnerability Data
AGL app-framework-main thru 17.1.12 contains a Zip Slip path traversal vulnerability (CWE-22) combined with a TOCTOU race condition (CWE-367) in the widget installation flow. The is_valid_filename function in wgtpkg-zip.c validates ZIP entry names but does not check for dot notation…
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directory traversal sequences it only blocks absolute paths. The zread extraction function uses openat(workdirfd, filename, O_CREAT) which resolves dot notation values relative to the work directory, allowing files to be written anywhere on the filesystem. Critically, in function install_widget in file wgtpkg-install.c, extraction via zread occurs BEFORE signature verification via check_all_signatures. Even if signature verification fails, the error cleanup (remove_workdir) only deletes the temporary work directory files written outside via path traversal persist permanently.
- CWE(s)
Related Threats
MITRE ATT&CK Enterprise Techniques
CVEs Like This One
Affected Assets
Mitigating Controls
Control response
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V5.3.2V15.4.2V17.2.6
Mitigating Controls (NIST 800-53 r5) AI
A reference monitor that is always invoked and analyzable structurally eliminates the non-atomic check-then-use pattern underlying TOCTOU.
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.
Process isolation limits the blast radius of a successful TOCTOU exploitation but does not remove the race itself.
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 directly include coding standards and reviews that prevent TOCTOU race conditions.
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.
PR.AA-05 defines and reviews access policies but does not address code-level pathname neutralization, so neither direction prevents CWE-22.
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.