CVE-2009-0318
Official description Straight from the sourceThe vendor's or NVD's own wording, published unedited. Authoritative, but often terse — it says what broke, rarely what to do.
NVD · uneditedUntrusted search path vulnerability in the GObject Python interpreter wrapper in Gnumeric allows local users to execute arbitrary code via a Trojan horse Python file in the current working directory, related to a vulnerability in the PySys_SetArgv function (CVE-2008-5983).
Technical summary Written by usOur analysis, written from the advisory, the CVSS vector and the affected-version data. It adds context the advisory leaves out, and never invents facts that are not in the source.
dbcve analysis · high confidenceUntrusted search path vulnerability in Gnumeric's GObject Python interpreter wrapper allows local users to execute arbitrary code via a Trojan horse Python file placed in the current working directory. The vulnerability stems from improper handling of PySys_SetArgv (CVE-2008-Related), causing Python to execute scripts from the current directory before searching the intended path.
Verify against the referenced sources before acting — the references below are authoritative for this CVE, this summary is not.
Affected products & versions What the vendor confirmedThe version ranges the vendor confirmed as vulnerable. If your version sits inside a range here, treat yourself as exposed until you have upgraded.
NVD · CPE dataall versionsCVSS breakdown How the score is builtThe industry scoring standard. It rates how the flaw is reached, what it takes to exploit, and what an attacker gains — the score is derived from those, not the other way round.
From the vector- Attack vector
- Local
- Complexity
- M
- Authentication
- None
- Confidentiality
- Complete
- Integrity
- Complete
- Availability
- Complete
AV:L/AC:M/Au:N/C:C/I:C/A:C
Am I affected? How to checkSteps we derive from the advisory and the affected-version data, so you can decide whether this CVE reaches your setup. They are a guide, not a scan — your own configuration is the authority.
dbcve checksWork through these to decide whether this CVE applies to you.
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Confirm Gnumeric installationRun `gnumeric --version` or check for the gnumeric package using your system package manager (dpkg, rpm, brew, etc.)Affected if Gnumeric is installed and the version uses GObject Python integration (all versions are affected)
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Identify Python script execution contextExamine if Gnumeric loads or can load Python scripts through the GObject introspection layer. Check for gobject-related Python bindings in the system: `python -c "import gobject"` or look for /usr/lib/python*/dist-packages/gobject* filesAffected if The GObject Python wrapper is present and loaded by Gnumeric
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Audit current working directoriesBefore running Gnumeric, list all directories where you typically launch it from: `ls -la *.py` to check for any Python files present in those locationsAffected if Any directory from which you run Gnumeric contains .py files that could be executed as Trojan horse scripts
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Verify Python module search pathRun `python -c "import sys; print(sys.path)"` to see the default module search order, noting that the current directory (empty string) appears early in the pathAffected if The current working directory (represented as empty string '') is included in Python's sys.path, allowing local Python scripts to be imported before standard library modules
A user is affected if they run Gnumeric from a directory containing Python files that could be executed as malicious scripts before Python's intended module path is searched.
Generated from the published advisory. Verify against your own configuration.
Remediation Closing itWhat it takes to close this. Where a vendor fix exists we point at it; where none exists we say so plainly, and can build one. Effort estimates are scoped from the advisory, not from your codebase.
From vendor dataEnsure Gnumeric does not execute Python scripts from the current working directory; run Gnumeric from trusted directories and apply any available patches for the GObject Python wrapper to properly initialize the Python search path.
- Consultation2.0 h
- Implementation2.0 h
- Testing2.0 h
- Review / QA1.0 h
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Free · runs locallyCheck whether your project pulls in CVE-2009-0318 — or any other known-vulnerable package — straight from your lock files. Free and open source; it runs locally and uploads nothing.
References Go to the primary sourcePrimary sources — vendor advisories, patches and trackers. Where our summary and a reference disagree, the reference wins.
Primary sourcesPractitioner notes
ContributedPeer-ranked notes from engineers who’ve handled CVE-2009-0318 in production — separate from our analysis above.
The advisory tells you what broke. It rarely tells you what actually worked. If you’ve dealt with this one, that detail is what the next engineer is searching for.
- The version that genuinely resolved it — not the one the vendor claimed
- A config change or rule that shut the vector down
- A gotcha in the upgrade path that cost you an afternoon
No notes yet
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- Version or environment caveats, and links to real fixes
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