ChatGPT File Download Flow Vulnerability Could Be Abused to Access System Files

A researcher demonstrated a proof-of-concept chain in ChatGPT where social-engineering the model caused it to generate a download URL with a sandbox_path parameter that, due to inconsistent path normalization, allowed traversal (e.g., /mnt/data/test.html/../../../../etc/passwd) and returned /etc/passwd from the execution environment. OpenAI has remediated the issue by redesigning the download flow; the practical impact was limited by sandboxing, but the case highlights how prompt-based guardrail manipulation and traditional web vulnerabilities can combine in LLM platforms.