CVE-2020-11651

SaltStack Salt Authentication Bypass

9.8 CRITICALActively exploited (CISA KEV)Public exploitEPSS 96.6%

Published30 Apr 2020
Added to CISA KEV3 Nov 2021
Remediation due3 May 2022

SaltStack Salt contains an authentication bypass vulnerability in the salt-master process ClearFuncs due to improperly validating method calls. The vulnerability allows a remote user to access some methods without authentication, which can be used to retrieve user tokens from the salt master and/or run commands on salt minions. Salt users who follow fundamental internet security guidelines and best practices are not affected by this vulnerability.

Added to KEV: 3 Nov 2021Federal remediation due: 3 May 2022

Description

An issue was discovered in SaltStack Salt before 2019.2.4 and 3000 before 3000.2. The salt-master process ClearFuncs class does not properly validate method calls. This allows a remote user to access some methods without authentication. These methods can be used to retrieve user tokens from the salt master and/or run arbitrary commands on salt minions.

CVSS 3.1 breakdown

Attack vectorNetwork

Attack complexityLow

Privileges requiredNone

User interactionNone

ScopeUnchanged

ConfidentialityHigh

IntegrityHigh

AvailabilityHigh

CVSS:3.1/AV:N/AC:L/PR:N/UI:N/S:U/C:H/I:H/A:H

Affected products

Saltstack Salt≥ 3000 < 3000.2 · < 2019.2.4

VMware Application Remote Collector7.5.0 · 8.0.0

Canonical Ubuntu Linux16.04 · 18.04

Debian Linux10.0 · 8.0 · 9.0

Opensuse Leap15.1

Remediation

Fixed in

Saltstack Salt≥ 3000.2

Patch & vendor advisories

https://docs.saltstack.com/en/latest/topics/releases/2019.2.4.html

References

http://lists.opensuse.org/opensuse-security-announce/2020-04/msg00047.htmlMailing ListThird Party Advisory
http://lists.opensuse.org/opensuse-security-announce/2020-07/msg00070.htmlMailing ListThird Party Advisory
http://packetstormsecurity.com/files/157560/Saltstack-3000.1-Remote-Code-Execution.htmlExploitThird Party AdvisoryVDB Entry
http://packetstormsecurity.com/files/157678/SaltStack-Salt-Master-Minion-Unauthenticated-Remote-Code-Execution.htmlExploitThird Party AdvisoryVDB Entry
https://docs.saltstack.com/en/latest/topics/releases/2019.2.4.htmlVendor Advisory
https://github.com/saltstack/salt/blob/v3000.2_docs/doc/topics/releases/3000.2.rstThird Party Advisory
https://lists.debian.org/debian-lts-announce/2020/05/msg00027.htmlMailing ListThird Party Advisory
https://tools.cisco.com/security/center/content/CiscoSecurityAdvisory/cisco-sa-salt-2vx545AGThird Party Advisory
https://usn.ubuntu.com/4459-1/Third Party Advisory
https://www.cisa.gov/known-exploited-vulnerabilities-catalog?field_cve=CVE-2020-11651US Government Resource

and 2 more references

Frequently asked

Is CVE-2020-11651 being actively exploited?

Yes. CVE-2020-11651 is listed in the CISA Known Exploited Vulnerabilities (KEV) catalog, added 3 Nov 2021.

How severe is CVE-2020-11651?

CVE-2020-11651 has a CVSS 3.1 base score of 9.8, rated critical. EPSS estimates a 96.6% probability of exploitation.

Which products are affected by CVE-2020-11651?

Affected products include Saltstack Salt, VMware Application Remote Collector, Canonical Ubuntu Linux, Debian Linux, Opensuse Leap.

How do I fix CVE-2020-11651?

Upgrade affected software to a fixed version, for example Saltstack Salt 3000.2 or later, then confirm no affected versions remain in your inventory.

How Secuno handles this

Secuno correlates vulnerabilities like CVE-2020-11651 against the real software inventory on every managed device, every day. Rather than a static severity, each match is scored in context: exploit availability, EPSS, the asset's exposure, and business criticality decide where it lands in the queue. Because it is on the CISA KEV list, Secuno flags any affected asset as top-priority automatically. If an affected version is present anywhere across your portfolio, it surfaces automatically with a prioritised remediation path.

See how prioritisation works Book a demo

Data from the NVD, CISA KEV catalog and FIRST EPSS. CVSS 3.1 base score shown where available.