CVE-2026-71212
Received Received - Intake

Command Injection in xidown

Publication date: 2026-08-05

Last updated on: 2026-08-05

Assigner: 309f9ea4-e3e9-4c6c-b79d-e8eb01244f2c

Description
xidown (a yt-dlp/ffmpeg GUI wrapper) builds its yt-dlp command-line invocation (xidown/core/scanner.py and downloader.py) by appending the user-provided or scanned URL as a bare trailing positional argument, with no '--' end-of-options marker and no scheme validation anywhere in the codebase. Because yt-dlp parses any argument beginning with '-' as a CLI option rather than link text, a crafted 'URL' value such as -U (yt-dlp's self-update flag) or --exec=... is parsed as a real yt-dlp option instead of a URL, altering the tool's control flow before its own URL validation runs. Full code execution via --exec was not demonstrated in the single-URL flow tested, but the underlying argument-injection primitive is confirmed and unmitigated across all call sites.

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Meta Information

Published
2026-08-05
Last Modified
2026-08-05
Generated
2026-08-05
AI Q&A
2026-08-05
EPSS Evaluated
N/A
NVD
CVE-2026-71212
EUVD
EUVD-2026-53209

Affected Vendors & Products

Showing 2 associated CPEs
Vendor Product Version / Range
yt-dlp yt-dlp *
ffmpeg ffmpeg *

Helpful Resources

Exploitability

CWE
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KEV
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CWE ID Description
CWE-88 The product constructs a string for a command to be executed by a separate component in another control sphere, but it does not properly delimit the intended arguments, options, or switches within that command string.

Attack-Flow Graph

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Executive Summary

This vulnerability involves xidown, a GUI wrapper for yt-dlp/ffmpeg, which improperly constructs yt-dlp command-line invocations. It appends user-provided URLs without validation or proper argument separation, allowing crafted inputs like '-U' or '--exec=...' to be interpreted as yt-dlp options instead of URLs. This alters the tool's behavior before URL validation occurs.

Detection Guidance

To detect this vulnerability, monitor yt-dlp command invocations for unusual arguments or URLs starting with hyphens. Check logs for commands like yt-dlp -U or yt-dlp --exec=... where the URL is not properly validated. Inspect xidown's scanner.py and downloader.py for lack of -- delimiter and scheme validation.

Impact Analysis

An attacker could exploit this to trick yt-dlp into executing unintended commands, such as updating itself or running arbitrary code via the '--exec' option. This could lead to unauthorized system changes, data exfiltration, or further compromise of the affected system.

Compliance Impact

This vulnerability could potentially violate compliance with standards like GDPR and HIPAA by enabling unauthorized code execution or data modification through argument injection. If exploited, it may lead to unauthorized access to sensitive data, compromising confidentiality and integrity requirements under these regulations.

Mitigation Strategies

Update xidown to a patched version if available. Avoid using xidown with untrusted URLs. Implement input validation to reject URLs starting with hyphens. Add -- delimiter before URLs in command construction. Monitor yt-dlp processes for unexpected arguments.

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