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Full vulnerability report · 2020
CVE-2020-2012High confidence

PAN-OS: Panorama: XML external entity reference ('XXE') vulnerability leads the to information leak

Palo Alto Networks · PAN-OS

7.5HighCVSS 3.1
Recommended action
Within 7 days

High technical severity; prioritise exposed affected systems while verifying vendor guidance.

Patch available
Optional official sources

National CERT insights
?CERT means Computer Emergency Response Team; CSIRT is the closely related term Computer Security Incident Response Team.

Select the national-authority views to include. The exact source language is shown on each matched advisory. Your choice is remembered on this device and encoded in the shareable URL.

Official European source

ENISA European Vulnerability Database

Official EUVD identifiers, advisory evidence and known-exploited context. Missing fields are not treated as evidence of low risk.

1 current
ENISA EUVD identifier

EUVD-2020-22040

No EUVD known-exploited evidence

ENISA has published the identifier mapping but no EUVD description has been stored yet.

EUVD state
Present in the current official mapping
Known exploitation
Not present in the current ENISA EUVD known-exploited dataset. This is not proof of no exploitation.
ENISA score
Not supplied in the stored EUVD record
Advisory evidence
No linked advisory details stored yet
Recommended actionWithin 7 days

High technical severity; prioritise exposed affected systems while verifying vendor guidance.

Patch available
01

What, why and how

Improper restriction of XML external entity reference ('XXE') vulnerability in Palo Alto Networks Panorama management service allows remote unauthenticated attackers with network access to the Panorama management interface to read arbitrary files on the system. This issue affects: All versions of PAN-OS for Panorama 7.1 and 8.0; PAN-OS for Panorama 8.1 versions earlier than 8.1.13; PAN-OS for Panorama 9.0 versions earlier than 9.0.7.

What

Improper restriction of XML external entity reference ('XXE') vulnerability in Palo Alto Networks Panorama management service allows remote unauthenticated attackers with network access to the Panorama management interface to read arbitrary files on the system. This issue affects: All versions of PAN-OS for Panorama 7.1 and 8.0; PAN-OS for Panorama 8.1 versions earlier than 8.1.13; PAN-OS for Panorama 9.0 versions earlier than 9.0.7.

Why

The product processes an XML document that can contain XML entities with URIs that resolve to documents outside of the intended sphere of control, causing the product to embed incorrect documents into its output.

How

An attacker operating through a network path may attempt exploitation without authentication or user interaction. If successful, the issue may obtain information outside the intended access boundary.

What

Improper restriction of XML external entity reference ('XXE') vulnerability in Palo Alto Networks Panorama management service allows remote unauthenticated attackers with network access to the Panorama management interface to read arbitrary files on the system. This issue affects: All versions of PAN-OS for Panorama 7.1 and 8.0; PAN-OS for Panorama 8.1 versions earlier than 8.1.13; PAN-OS for Panorama 9.0 versions earlier than 9.0.7.

Why

The product processes an XML document that can contain XML entities with URIs that resolve to documents outside of the intended sphere of control, causing the product to embed incorrect documents into its output.

How

An attacker operating through a network path may attempt exploitation without authentication or user interaction. If successful, the issue may obtain information outside the intended access boundary.

02

Exploit reality and attack path

CVSS severity, EPSS forecast probability, public exploit material and CISA-confirmed exploitation are separate signals.

Observed exploitation
?Confirmed exploitation and public exploit material are separate signals. Attacks can occur without public proof-of-concept or exploit code.
No confirmed evidence

No CISA KEV match was present at the last successful refresh. This means no confirmation from that source, not proof of no exploitation.

Public PoC / exploit material
?Confirmed exploitation and public exploit material are separate signals. Attacks can occur without public proof-of-concept or exploit code.
None recorded

No exploit-tagged reference or CISA SSVC proof-of-concept state is currently recorded. Research may still exist outside the structured feeds.

Likely attack path
a network path → Improper Restriction of XML External Entity Reference → obtain information outside the intended access boundary
Attack surface
Network
Privileges required
None: unauthenticated exploitation is possible
User interaction
None
Attack complexity
Low: no specialised conditions are recorded
Security boundary
Unchanged: impact remains within the vulnerable component's security authority
Weakness
?CWE means Common Weakness Enumeration: a standard category for the underlying weakness.
CWE-611 ↗

CWE-611: Improper Restriction of XML External Entity Reference. The product processes an XML document that can contain XML entities with URIs that resolve to documents outside of the intended sphere of control, causing the product to embed incorrect documents into its output.

CVSS vector
?CVSS means Common Vulnerability Scoring System. The vector records the metric values used to calculate technical severity.
CVSS:3.1/AV:N/AC:L/PR:N/UI:N/S:U/C:H/I:N/A:N

Common Vulnerability Scoring System 3.1: the compact vector below is decoded into plain language.

AVNetworkAttack vector: The vulnerable component can be reached over a network.ACLowAttack complexity: No specialised conditions are required beyond attacker-controlled input.PRNonePrivileges required: The attacker does not need an account or existing privileges.UINoneUser interaction: No action by another user is required.SUnchangedScope: The security impact remains within the vulnerable component's authority.CHighConfidentiality impact: A successful attack can cause a major loss.INoneIntegrity impact: No direct loss is represented by this metric.ANoneAvailability impact: No direct loss is represented by this metric.
Post-exploitation / living off the land
No specific living-off-the-land technique is confirmed in the structured sources. Monitor normal administration tools for activity inconsistent with the affected service's baseline.
NetworkUnauthenticatedCWE-611
A

Official authority intelligence

Only matched European and national findings are included. Language selectors and unavailable sources are omitted.

CERT-FR · French · CERTFR-2020-AVI-290Multiples vulnérabilités dans Palo Alto PAN-OS et GlobalProtect

998 du 13 mai 2020 Bulletin de sécurité Palo Alto CVE-2020-2001 du 13 mai 2020 Bulletin de sécurité Palo Alto CVE-2020-2002 du 13 mai 2020 Bulletin de sécurité Palo Alto CVE-2020-2003 du 13 mai 2020 Bulletin de sécurité Palo Alto CVE-2020-2004 du 13 mai 2020 Bulletin de sécurité Palo Alto CVE-2020-2005 du 13 mai 2020 Bulletin de sécurité Palo Alto CVE-2020-2006 du 13 mai 2020 Bulletin de sécurité Palo Alto CVE-2020-2007 du 13 mai 2020 Bulletin de sécurité Palo Alto CVE-2020-2008 du 13 mai 2020 Bulletin de sécurité Palo Alto CVE-2020-2009 du 13 mai 2020 Bulletin de sécurité Palo Alto CVE-2020-2010 du 13 mai 2020 Bulletin de sécurité Palo Alto CVE-2020-2012 du 13 mai 2020 Bulletin de sécurité Palo Alto CVE-2020-2013 du 13 mai 2020 Bulletin de sécurité Palo Alto CVE-2020-2014 du 13 mai 2020 Bulletin de sécurité Palo Alto CVE-2020-2015 du 13 mai 2020 Bulletin de sécurité Palo Alto CVE-2020-2017 du 13 mai 2020 Bulletin de sécurité Palo Alto CVE-2020-2018 du 13 mai 2020 Une gestion de version détaillée se trouve à la fin de ce document. Risques Atteinte à l'intégrité des données Atteinte à la confidentialité des données Contournement de la politique de sécurité Déni de service à distance Exécution de code arbitraire à distance Injection de code indirecte à distance (XSS) Élévation de privilèges Sys

Official advisory
03

Patch and workaround

Operational remediation based on structured source evidence.

Status
?Patch availability is based on structured fixed-version fields and authoritative update references. If no fix is verified, check the vendor advisory before making a change.
Patch available
Affected
8.0.*; 7.1.*; 8.1 < 8.1.13; 9.0 < 9.0.7
Fixed
9.1.0 < 9.1*
Action
Review the linked authoritative reference and apply the recorded fixed release appropriate to the affected product branch.
Workaround
No verified workaround is recorded. If business-safe, reduce exposure to the affected interface and allow only trusted sources until authoritative guidance is available.
04

Evidence and provenance

Published 13 May 2020 · Last source change 17 Sept 2024, 04:24 UTC · CWE-611 · Improper Restriction of XML External Entity Reference

CVE recordCVE.org · 5.1
CVSS sourceCNA
EPSS source
?The date BlackTree first stored a score for this CVE from the daily FIRST EPSS feed.
FIRST · tracked since 2026-08-14
European sourceENISA EUVD · EUVD-2020-22040
Product sourceCNA
Remediation sourceCVE/CNA references
CWE sourceCNA
NVD statusNVD modified after enrichment

Core structured fields are present and their contributing authorities are shown above.

Material change intelligence

What changed after publication

View recent updates →

No material field changes have been recorded since change tracking began. Routine source refreshes and cosmetic edits are intentionally excluded.

Material fields only · duplicate refreshes suppressed · history retained for the configured operational retention period
CVE published
Fixed release or patch reference recorded
ENISA EUVD · EUVD-2020-22040↗CVE authority or vendor reference↗Official CVE record (CNA and ADP data)↗NVD record↗
Technical terms and abbreviations used in this report
CVE
Common Vulnerabilities and Exposures: the public identifier for one disclosed vulnerability.
CVSS
Common Vulnerability Scoring System: a technical severity framework; it is not patching priority by itself.
EPSS
Exploit Prediction Scoring System: FIRST's estimate of the probability that exploitation activity will be observed in the next 30 days; it is a forecast, not confirmation.
CWE
Common Weakness Enumeration: the standard category describing the underlying software or hardware weakness.
CNA
CVE Numbering Authority: an organisation authorised to assign and publish CVE records.
CISA ADP
Cybersecurity and Infrastructure Security Agency Authorized Data Publisher: structured enrichment added to a CVE record.
NVD
National Vulnerability Database: NIST's enrichment service for CVE records.
CERT / CSIRT
A computer security incident response team that publishes warnings or coordinates incident response.
PoC
Proof of concept: public material that demonstrates or helps reproduce exploitation.
CSAF
Common Security Advisory Framework: a machine-readable format for security advisories.
LoTL
Living off the land: abuse of legitimate tools or system functions during an attack.
Free version - for non-commercial use only.CVE-2020-2012 · cve.blacktree.nl