CVE-2020-1953

Apache Commons Configuration uses a third-party library to parse YAML files which by default allows the instantiation of classes if the YAML includes special statements. Apache Commons Configuration versions 2.2, 2.3, 2.4, 2.5, 2.6 did not change the default settings of this library. So if a YAML file was loaded from an untrusted source, it could therefore load and execute code out of the control of the host application.

Published: 2020-03-13 Last update: 2024-11-21 Assigner: [email protected] Source: [email protected]

Conclusion & alert: CVE-2020-1953 is rated Moderate Risk (64.9/100): CVSS Critical severity, with medium exploitation likelihood (EPSS 2.73%). Mandatory action: 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-2020-1953

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 2025-11-21 8.32% 2.73% -5.59%
2 2025-11-18 2.73% 8.32% +5.59%
3 2025-07-15 2.73%

Full EPSS history (17 records total)

Common vulnerability scoring system (CVSS) metrics for CVE-2020-1953

CVSS metrics for this CVE.

Base score Version Severity Vector Exploitability Impact Score source
10.0 3.1 CRITICAL
CVSS:3.1/AV:N/AC:L/PR:N/UI:N/S:C/C:H/I:H/A:H 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:L)
Once they can reach the bug, pulling it off is straightforward—no weird race conditions or rare setup.
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:C)
Breaking this can reach past the original component and bite other resources—bigger blast radius.
Confidentiality (C:H)
Serious risk that confidential data gets exposed in a big way.
Integrity (I:H)
They could widely tamper with or forge data—trust in the data is badly hurt.
Availability (A:H)
Could take the service down hard or make it unusable for people who depend on it.
3.9 6.0 [email protected]
7.5 2.0 HIGH
AV:N/AC:L/Au:N/C:P/I:P/A:P Click to expand
Access vector (AV:N)
Can be exploited remotely over network reachability.
Access complexity (AC:L)
Exploitation conditions are straightforward and predictable.
Authentication (AU:N)
No authentication is required.
Confidentiality impact (C:P)
Partial confidentiality impact.
Integrity impact (I:P)
Partial integrity impact.
Availability impact (A:P)
Partial availability impact.
10.0 6.4 [email protected]

Weakness enumeration for CVE-2020-1953

GitHub Security Advisory for CVE-2020-1953

GHSA-7qx4-pp76-vrqh · Severity: critical · Ecosystem: maven — Remote code execution in Apache Commons Configuration

OS Trackers for CVE-2020-1953

vendor priority summary link
debian not yet assigned CVE-2020-1953 not yet assigned priority: Debian including 1 source packages (commons-configuration2), 5 status rows across 5 suites (bookworm, bullseye, forky, sid, trixie): resolved 5. https://security-tracker.debian.org/tracker/CVE-2020-1953
redhat high https://access.redhat.com/security/cve/CVE-2020-1953
ubuntu medium CVE-2020-1953 medium priority: Ubuntu including 1 source packages (commons-configuration2), 17 status rows across 17 suites (bionic, eoan, focal, groovy, hirsute, impish, jammy, kinetic, lunar, mantic, noble, oracular, plucky, questing, trusty, upstream, xenial): not-affected 11, DNE 2, needed 2, ignored 1, released 1. https://ubuntu.com/security/CVE-2020-1953

Affected software / configurations for CVE-2020-1953

Vendor Product Version Raw CPE
apache commons_configuration 2.2 cpe:2.3:a:apache:commons_configuration:2.2:*:*:*:*:*:*:*
apache commons_configuration 2.3 cpe:2.3:a:apache:commons_configuration:2.3:*:*:*:*:*:*:*
apache commons_configuration 2.4 cpe:2.3:a:apache:commons_configuration:2.4:*:*:*:*:*:*:*
apache commons_configuration 2.5 cpe:2.3:a:apache:commons_configuration:2.5:*:*:*:*:*:*:*
apache commons_configuration 2.6 cpe:2.3:a:apache:commons_configuration:2.6:*:*:*:*:*:*:*
oracle database_server 11.2.0.4 cpe:2.3:a:oracle:database_server:11.2.0.4:*:*:*:*:*:*:*
oracle database_server 12.1.0.2 cpe:2.3:a:oracle:database_server:12.1.0.2:*:*:*:*:*:*:*
oracle database_server 12.2.0.1 cpe:2.3:a:oracle:database_server:12.2.0.1:*:*:*:*:*:*:*
oracle database_server 18c cpe:2.3:a:oracle:database_server:18c:*:*:*:*:*:*:*
oracle database_server 19c cpe:2.3:a:oracle:database_server:19c:*:*:*:*:*:*:*
oracle healthcare_foundation 7.1.1 cpe:2.3:a:oracle:healthcare_foundation:7.1.1:*:*:*:*:*:*:*
oracle healthcare_foundation 7.2.0 cpe:2.3:a:oracle:healthcare_foundation:7.2.0:*:*:*:*:*:*:*
oracle healthcare_foundation 7.2.1 cpe:2.3:a:oracle:healthcare_foundation:7.2.1:*:*:*:*:*:*:*
oracle healthcare_foundation 7.3.0 cpe:2.3:a:oracle:healthcare_foundation:7.3.0:*:*:*:*:*:*:*

References for CVE-2020-1953

cvelogic Threat Intelligence