Remote Code Execution in Picklescan via Malicious Pickle Files

Impact Analysis

This vulnerability allows attackers to execute arbitrary code remotely when a malicious pickle file is loaded using pickle.load().

Such remote code execution can lead to unauthorized system commands being run, potentially compromising the affected system.

It poses a supply chain risk, as infected pickle files could be distributed through machine learning models, APIs, or saved Python objects, affecting users who load these files.

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Executive Summary

CVE-2025-71361 is a vulnerability in the picklescan library versions before 0.0.29 where the tool fails to detect malicious payloads embedded in Python pickle files.

The flaw involves the use of the Python function idlelib.calltip.Calltip.fetch_tip, which can be exploited via the __reduce__ method in a crafted pickle file to execute arbitrary remote code when the pickle file is loaded.

Attackers can embed undetected payloads that execute commands on the victim's system, bypassing picklescan's detection mechanisms.

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Detection Guidance

This vulnerability involves malicious payloads embedded in pickle files that execute arbitrary code when loaded via pickle.load(). Detection involves identifying pickle files that contain calls to idlelib.calltip.Calltip.fetch_tip, which picklescan versions before 0.0.29 fail to detect.

To detect this on your system, you can scan pickle files for suspicious __reduce__ method calls or specifically for the presence of idlelib.calltip.Calltip.fetch_tip usage.

While no explicit commands are provided in the resources, a practical approach includes:

• Use an updated version of picklescan (>=0.0.29) to scan pickle files for malicious payloads.
• Manually inspect pickle files with Python scripts that attempt to safely analyze the pickle contents without executing them, looking for references to idlelib.calltip.Calltip.fetch_tip.
• Monitor network traffic for suspicious pickle file transfers, especially those that might contain serialized Python objects.

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Mitigation Strategies

The primary mitigation step is to update picklescan to version 0.0.29 or later, where this vulnerability has been patched.

Additionally, avoid loading pickle files from untrusted or unauthenticated sources, as they may contain malicious payloads that execute arbitrary code.

Implement strict validation and scanning of pickle files before loading them in your environment.

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Compliance Impact

The provided information does not specify how CVE-2025-71361 affects compliance with common standards and regulations such as GDPR or HIPAA.

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