Summary
Command Injection in pip when used with Mercurial
When installing a package from a Mercurial VCS URL, e.g. pip install hg+..., with pip prior to v23.3, the specified Mercurial revision could be used to inject arbitrary configuration options to the hg clone call (e.g. --config). Controlling the Mercurial configuration can modify how and which repository is installed. This vulnerability does not affect users who aren't installing from Mercurial.
Impact
Untrusted input is inserted into a command that is later executed by the application, allowing the attacker to alter the intent of that command. Typical impact: arbitrary command execution in the application's environment.
CVE-2023-5752 has a CVSS score of 5.5 (Medium). The vector is requires local access, low privileges required, and no user interaction. A CVSS score reflects the worst-case severity of the vulnerability, not your specific exposure. Whether this affects your application depends on whether the vulnerable code is present and reachable in your environment. A fixed version is available (23.3); upgrading removes the vulnerable code path.
Affected versions
Security releases
Kodem intelligence
Severity tells you how bad this could be in the worst case. It does not tell you whether you are exposed. Exploitability and impact are functions of runtime truth: whether the vulnerable code is present, reachable, and actually executes in your application. A vulnerable package can sit in your dependency tree and never run.
Kodem, an Intelligent Application Security platform, uses runtime intelligence to reveal which vulnerabilities actually execute in production, so teams prioritize the ones that genuinely matter. Kodem's runtime-powered SCA identifies whether this CVE is reachable in your applications.
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Frequently Asked Questions
- What is CVE-2023-5752? CVE-2023-5752 is a medium-severity command injection vulnerability in pip (pip), affecting versions < 23.3. It is fixed in 23.3. Untrusted input is inserted into a command that is later executed by the application, allowing the attacker to alter the intent of that command.
- How severe is CVE-2023-5752? CVE-2023-5752 has a CVSS score of 5.5 (Medium). This score reflects the worst-case severity of the vulnerability, not your specific exposure. Whether it represents real risk in your environment depends on whether the vulnerable code is present and reachable.
- Which versions of pip are affected by CVE-2023-5752? pip (pip) versions < 23.3 is affected.
- Is there a fix for CVE-2023-5752? Yes. CVE-2023-5752 is fixed in 23.3. Upgrade to this version or later.
- Is CVE-2023-5752 exploitable, and should I be worried? Whether CVE-2023-5752 is exploitable in your environment depends on whether the vulnerable code is present and reachable. A CVSS score is a worst-case rating; it does not account for your specific deployment, configuration, or usage patterns. Kodem, an Intelligent Application Security platform, uses runtime intelligence to show which vulnerabilities actually execute in production, so you can focus on the ones that represent real risk. Get a demo
- What actually determines whether CVE-2023-5752 is exploitable, and how bad it is? Exploitability and impact are not fixed properties of a CVE. They depend on runtime truth: whether the vulnerable code is present, reachable, and actually executes in your application. A high CVSS score on a dependency that never runs is not the same as real risk. Kodem, an Intelligent Application Security platform, uses runtime intelligence to reveal which vulnerabilities actually execute in production, so teams prioritize the ones that genuinely matter.
- How do I fix CVE-2023-5752? Upgrade
pipto 23.3 or later.