CVE-2020-13946

In Apache Cassandra, all versions prior to 2.1.22, 2.2.18, 3.0.22, 3.11.8 and 4.0-beta2, it is possible for a local attacker without access to the Apache Cassandra process or configuration files to manipulate the RMI registry to perform a man-in-the-middle attack and capture user names and passwords used to access the JMX interface. The attacker can then use these credentials to access the JMX interface and perform unauthorised operations. Users should also be aware of CVE-2019-2684, a JRE vulnerability that enables this issue to be exploited remotely.

Published: 2020-09-01 Last update: 2026-06-17 Assigner: [email protected] Source: [email protected]
NVD Status：Modified，CVE State: published
View at NVD, CVE.org, EUVD

CVE-2020-13946 is rated Moderate Risk (56.1/100): CVSS Medium severity, with medium exploitation likelihood (EPSS 2.95%). EPSS rose +2.66% over the last day, indicating growing attacker interest. Review affected assets and schedule remediation.

Risk is dynamic; we continuously reassess and refresh what is shown on this page as upstream context changes.

Exploit prediction scoring system (EPSS) score for CVE-2020-13946

EPSS lead: Daily EPSS estimates relative likelihood of exploitation; percentile ranks this CVE among scored vulnerabilities (higher = more severe relative rank).

# Date Old EPSS score New EPSS score Delta (New - Old)
1 2026-06-15 0.29% 2.95% +2.66%
2 2026-03-16 0.51% 0.29% -0.22%
3 2026-03-15 — 0.51% —

Full EPSS history (25 records total)

Common vulnerability scoring system (CVSS) metrics for CVE-2020-13946

CVSS metrics for this CVE.

Base score Version Severity Vector Exploitability Impact Score source
5.9 3.1 MEDIUM
CVSS:3.1/AV:N/AC:H/PR:N/UI:N/S:U/C:H/I:N/A:N Click to expand
Attack vector (AV:N)
Could be attacked over the internet or any normal routed network—not just someone sitting at the machine.
Attack complexity (AC:H)
Even with access, the exploit needs extra luck, timing, or a fussy environment to actually work.
Privileges required (PR:N)
No account or special rights needed—anonymous or random user is enough.
User interaction (UI:N)
Nobody has to click “OK” or open a trap file; it can work without a victim helping.
Scope (S:U)
Damage stays in the same “trust bubble” as the broken component—no big spill into unrelated systems.
Confidentiality (C:H)
Serious risk that confidential data gets exposed in a big way.
Integrity (I:N)
Data isn’t meaningfully altered or forged.
Availability (A:N)
Service keeps running; no real outage angle.
 2.2 3.6 [email protected]
4.3 2.0 MEDIUM
AV:N/AC:M/Au:N/C:P/I:N/A:N Click to expand
Access vector (AV:N)
Can be exploited remotely over network reachability.
Access complexity (AC:M)
Exploitation needs some favorable conditions, but not exceptional ones.
Authentication (AU:N)
No authentication is required.
Confidentiality impact (C:P)
Partial confidentiality impact.
Integrity impact (I:N)
No integrity impact.
Availability impact (A:N)
No availability impact.
 8.6 2.9 [email protected]

Weakness enumeration for CVE-2020-13946

GitHub Security Advisory for CVE-2020-13946

GHSA-24ww-mc5x-xc43 · Severity: medium · Ecosystem: maven — Man-in-the-middle attack in Apache Cassandra

OS Trackers for CVE-2020-13946

vendor priority summary link
redhat medium — https://access.redhat.com/security/cve/CVE-2020-13946
suse medium CVE-2020-13946 severity moderate: SUSE including 2 source package names (cassandra, cassandra-tools), 10 product×package rows across 5 product lines (HPE Helion OpenStack 8, SUSE OpenStack Cloud 8, … (5 product lines)): Known Not Affected 10. https://www.suse.com/security/cve/CVE-2020-13946/

Affected software / configurations for CVE-2020-13946

Vendor Product Version Raw CPE
apache cassandra < 2.1.22 cpe:2.3:a:apache:cassandra:*:*:*:*:*:*:*:*
apache cassandra >= 2.2.0, < 2.2.18 cpe:2.3:a:apache:cassandra:*:*:*:*:*:*:*:*
apache cassandra >= 3.0.0, < 3.0.22 cpe:2.3:a:apache:cassandra:*:*:*:*:*:*:*:*
apache cassandra >= 3.11.0, < 3.11.8 cpe:2.3:a:apache:cassandra:*:*:*:*:*:*:*:*
apache cassandra 4.0.0 cpe:2.3:a:apache:cassandra:4.0.0:alpha1:*:*:*:*:*:*
apache cassandra 4.0.0 cpe:2.3:a:apache:cassandra:4.0.0:alpha2:*:*:*:*:*:*
apache cassandra 4.0.0 cpe:2.3:a:apache:cassandra:4.0.0:alpha3:*:*:*:*:*:*
apache cassandra 4.0.0 cpe:2.3:a:apache:cassandra:4.0.0:alpha4:*:*:*:*:*:*
apache cassandra 4.0.0 cpe:2.3:a:apache:cassandra:4.0.0:beta1:*:*:*:*:*:*
netapp oncommand_insight — cpe:2.3:a:netapp:oncommand_insight:-:*:*:*:*:*:*:*

References for CVE-2020-13946

cvelogic Threat Intelligence