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Full vulnerability report · 2020
CVE-2020-5260High confidence

malicious URLs may cause Git to present stored credentials to the wrong server

git · git

9.3CriticalCVSS 3.1
Recommended action
Within 7 days

Critical 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-2020-26465

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

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

Patch available
01

What, why and how

Affected versions of Git have a vulnerability whereby Git can be tricked into sending private credentials to a host controlled by an attacker. Git uses external "credential helper" programs to store and retrieve passwords or other credentials from secure storage provided by the operating system. Specially-crafted URLs that contain an encoded newline can inject unintended values into the credential helper protocol stream, causing the credential helper to retrieve the password for one server (e.g., good.example.com) for an HTTP request being made to another server (e.g., evil.example.com), resulting in credentials for the former being sent to the latter. There are no restrictions on the relationship between the two, meaning that an attacker can craft a URL that will present stored credentials for any host to a host of their choosing. The vulnerability can be triggered by feeding a malicious URL to git clone. However, the affected URLs look rather suspicious; the likely vector would be through systems which automatically clone URLs not visible to the user, such as Git submodules, or package systems built around Git. The problem has been patched in the versions published on April 14th, 2020, going back to v2.17.x. Anyone wishing to backport the change further can do so by applying commit 9a6bbee (the full release includes extra checks for git fsck, but that commit is sufficient to protect clients against the vulnerability). The patched versions are: 2.17.4, 2.18.3, 2.19.4, 2.20.3, 2.21.2, 2.22.3, 2.23.2, 2.24.2, 2.25.3, 2.26.1.

What

Affected versions of Git have a vulnerability whereby Git can be tricked into sending private credentials to a host controlled by an attacker. Git uses external "credential helper" programs to store and retrieve passwords or other credentials from secure storage provided by the operating system. Specially-crafted URLs that contain an encoded newline can inject unintended values into the credential helper protocol stream, causing the credential helper to retrieve the password for one server (e.g., good.example.com) for an HTTP request being made to another server (e.g., evil.example.com), resulting in credentials for the former being sent to the latter. There are no restrictions on the relationship between the two, meaning that an attacker can craft a URL that will present stored credentials for any host to a host of their choosing. The vulnerability can be triggered by feeding a malicious URL to git clone. However, the affected URLs look rather suspicious; the likely vector would be through systems which automatically clone URLs not visible to the user, such as Git submodules, or package systems built around Git. The problem has been patched in the versions published on April 14th, 2020, going back to v2.17.x. Anyone wishing to backport the change further can do so by applying commit 9a6bbee (the full release includes extra checks for git fsck, but that commit is sufficient to protect clients against the vulnerability). The patched versions are: 2.17.4, 2.18.3, 2.19.4, 2.20.3, 2.21.2, 2.22.3, 2.23.2, 2.24.2, 2.25.3, 2.26.1.

Why

The product receives input or data, but it does not validate or incorrectly validates that the input has the properties that are required to process the data safely and correctly.

How

An attacker operating through a network path may attempt exploitation without authentication after a user interaction. If successful, the issue may cause the confidentiality, integrity or availability impact described by the vendor.

What

Affected versions of Git have a vulnerability whereby Git can be tricked into sending private credentials to a host controlled by an attacker. Git uses external "credential helper" programs to store and retrieve passwords or other credentials from secure storage provided by the operating system. Specially-crafted URLs that contain an encoded newline can inject unintended values into the credential helper protocol stream, causing the credential helper to retrieve the password for one server (e.g., good.example.com) for an HTTP request being made to another server (e.g., evil.example.com), resulting in credentials for the former being sent to the latter. There are no restrictions on the relationship between the two, meaning that an attacker can craft a URL that will present stored credentials for any host to a host of their choosing. The vulnerability can be triggered by feeding a malicious URL to git clone. However, the affected URLs look rather suspicious; the likely vector would be through systems which automatically clone URLs not visible to the user, such as Git submodules, or package systems built around Git. The problem has been patched in the versions published on April 14th, 2020, going back to v2.17.x. Anyone wishing to backport the change further can do so by applying commit 9a6bbee (the full release includes extra checks for git fsck, but that commit is sufficient to protect clients against the vulnerability). The patched versions are: 2.17.4, 2.18.3, 2.19.4, 2.20.3, 2.21.2, 2.22.3, 2.23.2, 2.24.2, 2.25.3, 2.26.1.

Why

The product receives input or data, but it does not validate or incorrectly validates that the input has the properties that are required to process the data safely and correctly.

How

An attacker operating through a network path may attempt exploitation without authentication after a user interaction. If successful, the issue may cause the confidentiality, integrity or availability impact described by the vendor.

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 Input Validation → cause the confidentiality, integrity or availability impact described by the vendor
Attack surface
Network
Privileges required
None: unauthenticated exploitation is possible
User interaction
Required interaction required
Attack complexity
Low: no specialised conditions are recorded
Security boundary
Changed: exploitation can affect a different security authority
Weakness
?CWE means Common Weakness Enumeration: a standard category for the underlying weakness.
CWE-20

CWE-20: Improper Input Validation. The product receives input or data, but it does not validate or incorrectly validates that the input has the properties that are required to process the data safely and correctly.

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:R/S:C/C:H/I:H/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.UIRequiredUser interaction: Another user must perform an action for exploitation to succeed.SChangedScope: The attack can affect a component governed by a different security authority.CHighConfidentiality impact: A successful attack can cause a major loss.IHighIntegrity impact: A successful attack can cause a major loss.ANoneAvailability impact: No direct loss is represented by this metric.
Post-exploitation / living off the land
Stolen credentials, tokens and legitimate administration functions may provide continued access without deploying a large custom toolset.
NetworkUnauthenticatedCWE-20
A

Official authority intelligence

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

BSI · German · WID-SEC-W-2025-1905IBM QRadar SIEM Komponente: Mehrere Schwachstellen

Ein Angreifer kann mehrere Schwachstellen in IBM QRadar SIEM Komponenten ausnutzen, um Daten zu manipulieren, um einen Denial of Service Angriff durchzuführen, um beliebigen Programmcode auszuführen, um Sicherheitsvorkehrungen zu umgehen, und um Informationen offenzulegen.

Official advisory
BSI · German · WID-SEC-W-2025-0189git: Schwachstelle ermöglicht Offenlegung von Informationen

Ein entfernter, anonymer Angreifer kann eine Schwachstelle in git ausnutzen, um Anmeldeinformationen offenzulegen.

Official advisory
CERT-FR · French · CERTFR-2025-AVI-0746Multiples vulnérabilités dans les produits IBM

144 Bulletin de sécurité IBM 7243146 du 26 août 2025 https://www.ibm.com/support/pages/node/7243146 Bulletin de sécurité IBM 7242161 du 28 août 2025 https://www.ibm.com/support/pages/node/7242161 Bulletin de sécurité IBM 7243372 du 28 août 2025 https://www.ibm.com/support/pages/node/7243372 Bulletin de sécurité IBM 7243373 du 28 août 2025 https://www.ibm.com/support/pages/node/7243373 Bulletin de sécurité IBM 7243411 du 28 août 2025 https://www.ibm.com/support/pages/node/7243411 Référence CVE CVE-2019-17543 https://www.cve.org/CVERecord?id=CVE-2019-17543 Référence CVE CVE-2019-5427 https://www.cve.org/CVERecord?id=CVE-2019-5427 Référence CVE CVE-2020-5260 https://www.cve.org/CVERecord?id=CVE-2020-5260 Référence CVE CVE-2022-49058 https://www.cve.org/CVERecord?id=CVE-2022-49058 Référence CVE CVE-2022-49111 https://www.cve.org/CVERecord?id=CVE-2022-49111 Référence CVE CVE-2022-49136 https://www.cve.org/CVERecord?id=CVE-2022-49136 Référence CVE CVE-2022-49788 https://www.cve.org/CVERecord?id=CVE-2022-49788 Référence CVE CVE-2022-49846 https://www.cve.org/CVERecord?id=CVE-2022-49846 Référence CVE CVE-2022-49977 https://www.cve.org/CVERecord?id=CVE-2022-49977 Référence CVE CVE-2022-50020 https://www.cve.org/CVERecord?id=CVE-2022-50020 Référence CVE CVE-2024-10917 https://www.cve.org/CVERecord?id=C

Official advisory
CERT-FR · French · CERTFR-2020-AVI-691Multiples vulnérabilités dans les produits Juniper

.cve.org/CVERecord?id=CVE-2020-2755 Référence CVE CVE-2020-2756 https://www.cve.org/CVERecord?id=CVE-2020-2756 Référence CVE CVE-2020-2757 https://www.cve.org/CVERecord?id=CVE-2020-2757 Référence CVE CVE-2020-2773 https://www.cve.org/CVERecord?id=CVE-2020-2773 Référence CVE CVE-2020-2781 https://www.cve.org/CVERecord?id=CVE-2020-2781 Référence CVE CVE-2020-2800 https://www.cve.org/CVERecord?id=CVE-2020-2800 Référence CVE CVE-2020-2803 https://www.cve.org/CVERecord?id=CVE-2020-2803 Référence CVE CVE-2020-2805 https://www.cve.org/CVERecord?id=CVE-2020-2805 Référence CVE CVE-2020-2830 https://www.cve.org/CVERecord?id=CVE-2020-2830 Référence CVE CVE-2020-5260 https://www.cve.org/CVERecord?id=CVE-2020-5260 Gestion détaillée du document le 29 octobre 2020 Version initiale Alertes Avis Bulletins d’actualités Mentions légales Conditions générales À propos Contact cyber.gouv.fr service-public.fr legifrance.gouv.fr info.gouv.fr france.fr info.gouv.fr/risques Premier Ministre / Secrétariat Général de la Défense et de la Sécurité Nationale / Agence nationale de la sécurité des systèmes d'information

Official advisory
CERT-FR · French · CERTFR-2020-AVI-229Vulnérabilité dans Apple Xcode

Une vulnérabilité a été découverte dans Apple Xcode. Elle permet à un attaquant de provoquer une atteinte à la confidentialité des données.

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
< 2.17.4; >= 2.18.0, < 2.18.3; >= 2.19.0, 2.19.4; >= 2.20.0, < 2.20.3; >= 2.21.0, < 2.21.2; >= 2.22.0, < 2.22.3; >= 2.23.0, < 2.23.2; >= 2.24.0, < 2.24.2
Fixed
An authoritative update reference is available, but the fixed version is not recorded in the structured CVE fields. Check the linked vendor advisory for the applicable release.
Action
Review the linked authoritative reference and apply the recorded fixed release appropriate to the affected product branch.
Workaround
A mitigation or workaround reference is available from the source linked below; validate it against the affected product and version.
04

Evidence and provenance

Published 14 Apr 2020 · Last source change 4 Aug 2024, 08:22 UTC · CWE-20 · Improper Input Validation

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-2020-26465
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
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-2020-5260 · cve.blacktree.nl