CVE-2020-16846
CRITICALCVSS 9.8/10Actively ExploitedEPSS 99.59%
Last modified
CVE-2020-16846 is a critical-severity vulnerability rated 9.8/10 on the CVSS scale. An issue was discovered in SaltStack Salt through 3002. Sending crafted web requests to the Salt API, with the SSH client enabled, can result in shell injection.. CISA has confirmed active exploitation in the wild. EPSS estimates a 99.59% chance of exploitation in the next 30 days.
Description
An issue was discovered in SaltStack Salt through 3002. Sending crafted web requests to the Salt API, with the SSH client enabled, can result in shell injection.
Metrics
CVSS:3.1/AV:N/AC:L/PR:N/UI:N/S:U/C:H/I:H/A:H
Exploitation Status
This vulnerability is listed in CISA’s Known Exploited Vulnerabilities catalog, confirming active exploitation in the wild. Federal agencies must remediate by .
Weakness Enumeration
Affected Software
| Vendor | Product | Versions |
|---|---|---|
| Saltstack | Salt | < 2015.8.10 |
| Saltstack | Salt | >= 2015.8.11, < 2015.8.13 |
| Saltstack | Salt | >= 2016.3.0, < 2016.3.4 |
| Saltstack | Salt | >= 2016.3.5, < 2016.3.6 |
| Saltstack | Salt | >= 2016.3.7, < 2016.3.8 |
| Saltstack | Salt | >= 2016.11.0, < 2016.11.3 |
| Saltstack | Salt | >= 2016.11.4, < 2016.11.6 |
| Saltstack | Salt | >= 2016.11.7, < 2016.11.10 |
| Saltstack | Salt | >= 2017.5.0, < 2017.7.4 |
| Saltstack | Salt | >= 2017.7.5, < 2017.7.8 |
| Saltstack | Salt | >= 2018.2.0, < 2018.3.5 |
| Saltstack | Salt | >= 2019.2.0, < 2019.2.5 |
| Saltstack | Salt | >= 3000.0, < 3000.3 |
| Saltstack | Salt | 3001 |
| Saltstack | Salt | 3002 |
| Debian | Debian Linux | 9.0 |
| Debian | Debian Linux | 10.0 |
| Fedoraproject | Fedora | 31 |
| Opensuse | Leap | 15.1 |
References
- http://lists.opensuse.org/opensuse-security-announce/2020-11/msg00029.htmlMailing List, Third Party Advisory
- http://packetstormsecurity.com/files/160039/SaltStack-Salt-REST-API-Arbitrary-Command-Execution.htmlExploit, Third Party Advisory, VDB Entry
- https://github.com/saltstack/salt/releasesRelease Notes
- https://lists.debian.org/debian-lts-announce/2020/12/msg00007.htmlMailing List, Third Party Advisory
- https://lists.debian.org/debian-lts-announce/2022/01/msg00000.htmlMailing List, Third Party Advisory
- https://security.gentoo.org/glsa/202011-13Third Party Advisory
- https://www.debian.org/security/2021/dsa-4837Mailing List, Third Party Advisory
- https://www.saltstack.com/blog/on-november-3-2020-saltstack-publicly-disclosed-three-new-cves/Broken Link, Vendor Advisory
- https://www.zerodayinitiative.com/advisories/ZDI-20-1379/Third Party Advisory, VDB Entry
- https://www.zerodayinitiative.com/advisories/ZDI-20-1380/Third Party Advisory, VDB Entry
- https://www.zerodayinitiative.com/advisories/ZDI-20-1381/Third Party Advisory, VDB Entry
- https://www.zerodayinitiative.com/advisories/ZDI-20-1382/Third Party Advisory, VDB Entry
- https://www.zerodayinitiative.com/advisories/ZDI-20-1383/Third Party Advisory, VDB Entry
- http://lists.opensuse.org/opensuse-security-announce/2020-11/msg00029.htmlMailing List, Third Party Advisory
- http://packetstormsecurity.com/files/160039/SaltStack-Salt-REST-API-Arbitrary-Command-Execution.htmlExploit, Third Party Advisory, VDB Entry
- https://github.com/saltstack/salt/releasesRelease Notes
- https://lists.debian.org/debian-lts-announce/2020/12/msg00007.htmlMailing List, Third Party Advisory
- https://lists.debian.org/debian-lts-announce/2022/01/msg00000.htmlMailing List, Third Party Advisory
- https://security.gentoo.org/glsa/202011-13Third Party Advisory
- https://www.debian.org/security/2021/dsa-4837Mailing List, Third Party Advisory
- https://www.saltstack.com/blog/on-november-3-2020-saltstack-publicly-disclosed-three-new-cves/Broken Link, Vendor Advisory
- https://www.zerodayinitiative.com/advisories/ZDI-20-1379/Third Party Advisory, VDB Entry
- https://www.zerodayinitiative.com/advisories/ZDI-20-1380/Third Party Advisory, VDB Entry
- https://www.zerodayinitiative.com/advisories/ZDI-20-1381/Third Party Advisory, VDB Entry
- https://www.zerodayinitiative.com/advisories/ZDI-20-1382/Third Party Advisory, VDB Entry
- https://www.zerodayinitiative.com/advisories/ZDI-20-1383/Third Party Advisory, VDB Entry
- https://www.cisa.gov/known-exploited-vulnerabilities-catalog?field_cve=CVE-2020-16846US Government Resource
Timeline
- Published
- Last Modified
- Status
- Analyzed
Frequently Asked Questions
What is CVE-2020-16846?
An issue was discovered in SaltStack Salt through 3002. Sending crafted web requests to the Salt API, with the SSH client enabled, can result in shell injection.
How severe is CVE-2020-16846?
CVE-2020-16846 has a CVSS score of 9.8/10 (CRITICAL severity). The EPSS model estimates a 99.59% probability of exploitation in the next 30 days. This vulnerability is listed in CISA's Known Exploited Vulnerabilities catalog.
How do I fix CVE-2020-16846?
Check the vendor references and advisories linked above for patched versions and mitigation guidance. You can also run a Strix scan to test if your systems are affected.
How Strix Helps
- How Strix found a critical auth bypass in etcdStrix autonomously discovered a critical authentication bypass in etcd, later designated CVE-2026-33413.
- Autonomous PentestingAI agents that find and validate exploitable vulnerabilities like this one across your applications.
- PR ReviewsPentest every pull request so vulnerable code is caught before it ships to production.
- AI Penetration TestingHow AI-driven penetration testing continuously covers your attack surface.
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