---
id: CVE-2026-62383
title: >-
  nltk versions before 3.10.2 contain a symlink-based arbitrary file read
  vulnerability in IPIPANCorpusReader methods that bypass nltk.pathsec
  validation entirely
summary: >-
  nltk versions before 3.10.2 contain a symlink-based arbitrary file read
  vulnerability in IPIPANCorpusReader methods that bypass nltk.pathsec
  validation entirely. Attackers can place a symlink in the corpus root
  directory and read arbitra…
severity: medium
cvss: 5.5
cvssVector: 'CVSS:3.1/AV:L/AC:L/PR:L/UI:N/S:U/C:H/I:N/A:N'
cwe:
  - CWE-22
  - CWE-59
published: '2026-08-22'
updated: '2026-08-22'
source: NVD
sourceUrl: 'https://nvd.nist.gov/vuln/detail/CVE-2026-62383'
references:
  - url: 'https://github.com/nltk/nltk/security/advisories/GHSA-3hhw-38pf-pxj6'
    label: disclosure@vulncheck.com
  - url: >-
      https://www.vulncheck.com/advisories/nltk-ipipancorpusreader-symlink-arbitrary-file-read
    label: disclosure@vulncheck.com
  - url: 'https://nvd.nist.gov/vuln/detail/CVE-2026-62383'
  - url: 'https://github.com/nltk/nltk/pull/3727'
  - url: >-
      https://github.com/nltk/nltk/commit/ee1a42e51982c4dce6ad3ee77ff1ac43894288ab
  - url: 'https://github.com/nltk/nltk/releases/tag/v3.10.2'
  - url: >-
      https://github.com/pypa/advisory-database/tree/main/vulns/nltk/PYSEC-2026-3726.yaml
  - url: 'https://github.com/advisories/GHSA-3hhw-38pf-pxj6'
  - url: 'https://github.com/nltk/nltk'
tags:
  - nvd
  - ghsa
  - pip
  - osv
ingestedAt: '2026-08-23T04:42:15.124Z'
epss: 0.00185
epssPercentile: 0.08342
aliases:
  - GHSA-3hhw-38pf-pxj6
  - PYSEC-2026-3726
ecosystem: pip
vendor: nltk
product: nltk
affected:
  - 'nltk >= 3.10.0, < 3.10.2'
patched:
  - nltk 3.10.2
---

## Overview

nltk versions before 3.10.2 contain a symlink-based arbitrary file read vulnerability in IPIPANCorpusReader methods that bypass nltk.pathsec validation entirely. Attackers can place a symlink in the corpus root directory and read arbitrary files accessible to the process by calling channels(), domains(), categories(), or fileids() methods with the symlink filename.

## Remediation

Refer to the linked advisories for vendor-supplied fixes and affected version ranges.

## Package advisory (CVE-2026-62383)

Affected packages:

- `nltk >= 3.10.0, < 3.10.2`

Patched in:

- `nltk 3.10.2`

Source: https://github.com/advisories/GHSA-3hhw-38pf-pxj6