When pip extracts a malicious wheel archive, it can write files outside the intended installation directory because the extraction logic does not fully resolve or limit file paths. The flaw is limited to paths that are prefixes of the installation directory, so it cannot directly overwrite system executables in typical use, but it can nevertheless place arbitrary files next to installed packages in areas that may be readable or writable by local users.

The vulnerability affects pip, the Python Packaging Authority's package installer, across all supported versions that have the extraction logic in place. No specific version information is listed, so any pip installation that receives the affected wheel code is potentially susceptible.

The CVSS score is low at 2.0 and the EPSS indicates a very small likelihood of exploitation. The flaw requires an attacker to supply a malicious wheel and the victim to run pip, making it a local, pre‑authentication vulnerability. Because the path traversal is bounded to prefixes of the installation directory, the risk of overwriting executable files is limited, but there is still a chance to create or modify files that could impact the local environment. The vulnerability is not listed in the CISA KEV catalog.