CVE-2026-28407
Improper Archive Handling in malcontent Allows Malicious Content Retention
Publication date: 2026-02-27
Last updated on: 2026-03-03
Assigner: GitHub, Inc.
Description
Description
CVSS Scores
EPSS Scores
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Meta Information
Affected Vendors & Products
| Vendor | Product | Version / Range |
|---|---|---|
| chainguard | malcontent | to 1.21.0 (exc) |
Helpful Resources
Exploitability
| CWE ID | Description |
|---|---|
| CWE-703 | The product does not properly anticipate or handle exceptional conditions that rarely occur during normal operation of the product. |
Attack-Flow Graph
AI Powered Q&A
Can you explain this vulnerability to me?
The vulnerability in malcontent prior to version 1.21.0 involves the software removing nested archives that failed to extract. This behavior could potentially leave malicious content undetected because those nested archives were discarded instead of being scanned.
The improved approach, implemented in version 1.21.0, preserves these nested archives so that malcontent can attempt a best-effort scan of the archive bytes, reducing the risk of missing malicious content.
How can this vulnerability impact me? :
This vulnerability can impact you by allowing malicious content hidden within nested archives to go undetected during supply-chain compromise scans. Since malcontent would remove nested archives that failed to extract, any malware or malicious code inside those archives might remain unnoticed, increasing the risk of a supply-chain attack.
How does this vulnerability affect compliance with common standards and regulations (like GDPR, HIPAA)?:
I don't know
How can this vulnerability be detected on my network or system? Can you suggest some commands?
I don't know
What immediate steps should I take to mitigate this vulnerability?
To mitigate this vulnerability, upgrade malcontent to version 1.21.0 or later, as this version fixes the issue by preserving nested archives that fail to extract, allowing for a more thorough scan of potentially malicious content.