CVE-2020-7789

Public on

Last Modified: UTC

Description

A flaw was found in node-notifier. An attacker can run arbitrary commands on Linux machines due to the options params not being sanitized when being passed an array.

A flaw was found in node-notifier. An attacker can run arbitrary commands on Linux machines due to the options params not being sanitized when being passed an array.

Statement

Whilst the OpenShift ServiceMesh (OSSM) and OpenShift Container Platform (OCP) containers include the vulnerable nodejs-node-notifier library, the successful exploitation requires additional packages on the node (like desktop notification library) which are not part of the OpenShift ServiceMesh or OpenShift Container Platform products. Additionally access to the vulnerable nodejs-node-notifier library is restricted to authenticated users only (OpenShift OAuth authentication). Therefore these OSSM and OCP components have been marked as wont-fix and may be addressed in a future updates. OpenShift ServiceMesh (OSSM) 1.1 is out of support scope for Moderate and Low impact vulnerabilities, hence is marked Out Of Support Scope. The nodejs-notifier library was present in Red Hat Advanced Cluster Management for Kubernetes version 2.0, but is no longer used since version 2.1. Customers are advised to upgrade to the latest version which is fully supported, does not include this vulnerability.

Whilst the OpenShift ServiceMesh (OSSM) and OpenShift Container Platform (OCP) containers include the vulnerable nodejs-node-notifier library, the successful exploitation requires additional packages on the node (like desktop notification library) which are not part of the OpenShift ServiceMesh or OpenShift Container Platform products. Additionally access to the vulnerable nodejs-node-notifier library is restricted to authenticated users only (OpenShift OAuth authentication). Therefore these OSSM and OCP components have been marked as wont-fix and may be addressed in a future updates. OpenShift ServiceMesh (OSSM) 1.1 is out of support scope for Moderate and Low impact vulnerabilities, hence is marked Out Of Support Scope.

The nodejs-notifier library was present in Red Hat Advanced Cluster Management for Kubernetes version 2.0, but is no longer used since version 2.1. Customers are advised to upgrade to the latest version which is fully supported, does not include this vulnerability.

Additional information

  • Bugzilla 1906853: nodejs-node-notifier: command injection due to the options params not being sanitised when being passed an array
  • CWE-78: Improper Neutralization of Special Elements used in an OS Command ('OS Command Injection')
  • FAQ: Frequently asked questions about CVE-2020-7789

Common Vulnerability Scoring System (CVSS) Score Details

Important note

CVSS scores for open source components depend on vendor-specific factors (e.g. version or build chain). Therefore, Red Hat's score and impact rating can be different from NVD and other vendors. Red Hat remains the authoritative CVE Naming Authority (CNA) source for its products and services (see Red Hat classifications).

CVSS v3 Score Breakdown
Red HatNVD

CVSS v3 Base Score

5.6

5.6

Attack Vector

Network

Network

Attack Complexity

High

High

Privileges Required

None

None

User Interaction

None

None

Scope

Unchanged

Unchanged

Confidentiality Impact

Low

Low

Integrity Impact

Low

Low

Availability Impact

Low

Low

CVSS v3 Vector

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

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

Red Hat CVSS v3 Score Explanation

Proposed changes to NIST's current CVSSv3 scoring: AC:L -> AC:H C:H -> C:L I:H -> I:L A:H -> A:L The successful attack depends on the other components (like desktop notification library) and to exploit this vulnerability an attacker must gather knowledge about the environment in which the vulnerable target/component exists. Hence proposing a change to Attack Complexity (AC) metric from Low to High. Also due to the same reasons the attacker does not have control over what information is obtained (Confidentiality = Low), does not have control over the consequence of a possible data modification (Integrity = Low) and there could be possible performance reduction of the impacted component, not total loss of availability, hence Availability = Low. We consider this as a Moderate impact flaw.

Proposed changes to NIST's current CVSSv3 scoring: AC:L -> AC:H C:H -> C:L I:H -> I:L A:H -> A:L

The successful attack depends on the other components (like desktop notification library) and to exploit this vulnerability an attacker must gather knowledge about the environment in which the vulnerable target/component exists. Hence proposing a change to Attack Complexity (AC) metric from Low to High. Also due to the same reasons the attacker does not have control over what information is obtained (Confidentiality = Low), does not have control over the consequence of a possible data modification (Integrity = Low) and there could be possible performance reduction of the impacted component, not total loss of availability, hence Availability = Low.

We consider this as a Moderate impact flaw.

Frequently Asked Questions

Why is Red Hat's CVSS v3 score or Impact different from other vendors?

For open source software shipped by multiple vendors, the CVSS base scores may vary for each vendor's version depending on the version they ship, how they ship it, the platform, and even how the software is compiled. This makes scoring of vulnerabilities difficult for third-party vulnerability databases such as NVD that only provide a single CVSS base score for each vulnerability. Red Hat scores reflect how a vulnerability affects our products specifically.

For more information, see https://access.redhat.com/solutions/762393.

My product is listed as "Under investigation" or "Affected", when will Red Hat release a fix for this vulnerability?

  • "Under investigation" doesn't necessarily mean that the product is affected by this vulnerability. It only means that our Analysis Team is still working on determining whether the product is affected and how it is affected.
  • "Affected" means that our Analysis Team has determined that this product is affected by this vulnerability and might release a fix to address this in the near future.

What can I do if my product is listed as "Will not fix"?

A "will not fix" status means that a fix for an affected product version is not planned or not possible due to complexity, which may create additional risk.

Available options depend mostly on the Impact of the vulnerability and the current Life Cycle phase of your product. Overall, you have the following options:
  • Upgrade to a supported product version that includes a fix for this vulnerability (recommended).
  • Apply a mitigation (if one exists).
  • Open a support case to request a prioritization of releasing a fix for this vulnerability.

What can I do if my product is listed as "Fix deferred"?

A deferred status means that a fix for an affected product version is not guaranteed due to higher-priority development work.

Available options depend mostly on the Impact of the vulnerability and the current Life Cycle phase of your product. Overall, you have the following options:
  • Apply a mitigation (if one exists).
  • Open a support case to request a prioritization of releasing a fix for this vulnerability.
  • Red Hat Engineering focuses on addressing high-priority issues based on their complexity or limited lifecycle support. Therefore, lower-priority issues will not receive immediate fixes.

What is a mitigation?

A mitigation is an action that can be taken to reduce the impact of a security vulnerability, without deploying any fixes.

I have a Red Hat product but it is not in the above list, is it affected?

The listed products were found to include one or more of the components that this vulnerability affects. These products underwent a thorough evaluation to determine their affectedness by this vulnerability. Note that layered products (such as container-based offerings) that consume affected components from any of the products listed in this table may be affected and are not represented.

Why is my security scanner reporting my product as vulnerable to this vulnerability even though my product version is fixed or not affected?

In order to maintain code stability and compatibility, Red Hat usually does not rebase packages to entirely new versions. Instead, we backport fixes and new features to an older version of the package we distribute. This can result in some security scanners that only consider the package version to report the package as vulnerable. To avoid this, we suggest that you use an approved vulnerability scanner from our Red Hat Vulnerability Scanner Certification program.

My product is listed as "Out of Support Scope". What does this mean?

When a product is listed as "Out of Support Scope", it means a vulnerability with the impact level assigned to this CVE is no longer covered by its current support lifecycle phase. The product has been identified to contain the impacted component, but analysis to determine whether it is affected or not by this vulnerability was not performed. The product should be assumed to be affected. Customers are advised to apply any mitigation options documented on this page, consider removing or disabling the impacted component, or upgrade to a supported version of the product that has an update available.

Want to get errata notifications? Sign up here.