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OpenAdvisories
Medium · 5.8 CVE-2026-112938 EUVD-2026-117814GHSA-m462-7rxw-wvpg

filelock: StrictSoftFileLock follows a symbolic link swapped in at <path>.filelock and creates claim files in a directory another local user chooses

Published Nov 5, 2026 · Updated Nov 9, 2026 · Assigned by GitHub_M

Description

filelock is a platform-independent file lock for Python. From 3.30.0 until 4.2.1, On POSIX platforms, StrictSoftFileLock and AsyncStrictSoftFileLock validate the coordination directory in _ensure_protocol_directory but later reach the claims directory through _open_directory by pathname, allowing a local account that can rename the coordination name to swap in a symbolic link between check and use during acquisition. That race can create and leave claim files in another writable directory or strand claims in a different strict lock so the second lock times out. Separately, the claims property and force_break follow a resting symbolic link without a race when the lock user inspects or recovers the lock. Claims inspection discloses a file name to the other account only if the resulting exception text or claim_name reaches that account through a shared log, CI output, or error report. A blind force_break recovery that removes live claims from another strict lock can allow two processes into that lock's critical section; this path reaches other strict locks, not arbitrary files. This issue is fixed in version 4.2.1.

Affected products

VendorProductAffectedFixed
tox-dev filelock >= 3.30.0, < 4.2.1 —

Fixed in Linux distributions

Distributions backport fixes, so the version that fixes this vulnerability differs per release — upgrade to at least the version shown. From the distributions' security trackers and advisories.

ReleasePackageFixed inAdvisory
Debian 14 python-filelock 4.2.2-1 —
Debian 13 python-filelock No fix yet —
Debian 12 python-filelock No fix yet —
ReleasePackageFixed inAdvisory
Ubuntu 26.10 python-filelock No fix yet —
Ubuntu 26.04 LTS python-filelock No fix yet —
Show 4 more (older releases, extended support, other products)
ReleasePackageFixed inAdvisory
Ubuntu Pro 24.04 LTS python-filelock No fix yet —
Ubuntu Pro 22.04 LTS python-filelock No fix yet —
Ubuntu Pro 20.04 LTS python-filelock No fix yet —
Ubuntu Pro 18.04 LTS python-filelock No fix yet —

Wolfi

ReleasePackageFixed inAdvisory
Wolfi rolling py3.10-filelock No fix yet —

Affected packages

EcosystemPackageAffectedFixedRecord
PyPI filelock >= 3.30.0, < 4.2.1 4.2.1 GHSA-m462-7rxw-wvpg

References