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NVD / CVE Program· CNA mitre

CVE-2020-16846: An issue was discovered in SaltStack Salt through 3002.

CriticalCVSS 9.8 · v3.1KEVWeaponized Fix available

Noroxi assessment

Priority: Now (action score 99/100)

  • CISA has confirmed exploitation in the wild (Nov 3, 2021). Remediation deadline for US federal agencies: May 3, 2022.
  • A ready-made attack module is public (Metasploit, Nuclei); exploiting it takes no special expertise.
  • Probability of exploitation in the next 30 days: 99.5% (FIRST EPSS); higher than 99.9% of all records.
  • Anyone who can reach it over the internet can trigger it. No account or password is required. No user action is required. No special conditions are required; it is repeatable.
  • According to CISA the attack is automatable: targets can be found by mass scanning.
  • Fixed version: salt (Alpine:v3.13) 3002-r1; salt (Debian:10) 2018.3.4+dfsg1-6+deb10u2; salt (Debian:9) 2016.11.2+ds-1+deb9u6.
  • Mentioned 1 time in Turkish national cyber security advisories (siberguvenlik.gov.tr).

Patch today or shut off access. Upgrade to salt (Alpine:v3.13) 3002-r1; salt (Debian:10) 2018.3.4+dfsg1-6+deb10u2; salt (Debian:9) 2016.11.2+ds-1+deb9u6 or later.

Generated automatically from the record's data: CVSS (NVD and CNA), CISA KEV and SSVC, FIRST EPSS, exploit sources, fixed versions. How we calculate it

Primary sources: NVD · CVE.org · CISA KEV · FIRST EPSS

An issue was discovered in SaltStack Salt through 3002. Sending crafted web requests to the Salt API, with the SSH client enabled, can result in shell injection.

Published
Nov 6, 2020
Updated
Jun 16, 2026
EPSS
99.5% · 99th percentile

Report tools

JSON

Action score

99

Now

Patch today or shut off access.

CVSS
39 / 40 · 9.8 / 10
CISA KEV
30 / 30 · Listed
EPSS
30 / 30 · 99.5%

CISA SSVC decision

Exploitation
active
Automatable
yes
Technical impact
total

Vulnrichment: CISA's decision-tree inputs.

Actively exploited in the wild

CISA added this to its Known Exploited Vulnerabilities catalog on Nov 3, 2021. That signals real attacks, not theory.

Remediation deadline for US federal agencies: May 3, 2022.

Get told when this record changes

  • In CISA KEV: exploitation in the wild confirmed
  • Weaponized exploit exists
  • A fix has been released

If any of these changes, we'll tell you in the daily email digest.

Follow CVE-2020-16846

When you'll hear from us

  • when it enters CISA KEV
  • when exploit code appears or is weaponized
  • when the record is updated (including a fixed version)
  • when EPSS rises 20 points in a week

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Noroxi analysis

What does it mean in your environment?

The assessment above is generated automatically from the record's data; it doesn't know your environment. Our team verifies on your systems whether this vulnerability is actually exploitable and which mitigation is enough.

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Affected systems

Is your version affected?

Pick the product and type the version you run. It's compared with this record's version ranges in your browser; the version isn't sent anywhere.

VendorProduct
saltstacksalt
debiandebian linux
fedoraprojectfedora
opensuseleap

Affected versions

NVD version ranges (for catalog products). Add the product to your stack with a version and matching uses these.

  • debian debian linux10.0
  • debian debian linux9.0
  • fedoraproject fedora31
  • opensuse leap15.1
  • saltstack saltbefore 2015.8.10
  • saltstack salt2016.3.7 and later · before 2016.3.8
  • saltstack salt2016.11.0 and later · before 2016.11.3
  • saltstack salt2016.11.4 and later · before 2016.11.6
+11 more rows
  • saltstack salt2016.11.7 and later · before 2016.11.10
  • saltstack salt2017.5.0 and later · before 2017.7.4
  • saltstack salt2017.7.5 and later · before 2017.7.8
  • saltstack salt2018.2.0 and later · before 2018.3.5
  • saltstack salt2019.2.0 and later · before 2019.2.5
  • saltstack salt3000.0 and later · before 3000.3
  • saltstack salt2015.8.11 and later · before 2015.8.13
  • saltstack salt2016.3.5 and later · before 2016.3.6
  • saltstack salt2016.3.0 and later · before 2016.3.4
  • saltstack salt3001
  • saltstack salt3002

Package-level exposure

OSV and GitHub Advisory data: ecosystem, package and range. SBOM matching uses this table.

EcosystemPackageAffected rangeFix
Alpine:v3.13saltfrom 2015.8.11 · before 3002-r13002-r1
Debian:10saltbefore 2018.3.4+dfsg1-6+deb10u22018.3.4+dfsg1-6+deb10u2
Debian:9saltbefore 2016.11.2+ds-1+deb9u62016.11.2+ds-1+deb9u6
openSUSE:Leap 15.1saltbefore 3000-lp151.5.30.13000-lp151.5.30.1
openSUSE:Leap 15.2saltbefore 3000-lp152.3.15.13000-lp152.3.15.1
PyPIsaltfrom 2015.8.11 · before 2015.8.132015.8.13
PyPIsaltfrom 2016.11.0 · before 2016.11.32016.11.3
PyPIsaltfrom 2016.11.0 · before 2016.11.102016.11.10
PyPIsaltfrom 2016.11.4 · before 2016.11.62016.11.6
PyPIsaltfrom 2016.11.7 · before 2016.11.102016.11.10
PyPIsaltfrom 2016.3.0 · before 2016.3.82016.3.8
PyPIsaltfrom 2016.3.0 · before 2016.3.42016.3.4
PyPIsaltfrom 2016.3.5 · before 2016.3.62016.3.6
PyPIsaltfrom 2016.3.7 · before 2016.3.82016.3.8
PyPIsaltfrom 2017.5.0 · before 2017.7.82017.7.8
PyPIsaltfrom 2017.7.0 · before 2017.7.42017.7.4
PyPIsaltfrom 2017.7.5 · before 2017.7.82017.7.8
PyPIsaltfrom 2018.2.0 · before 2018.3.52018.3.5
PyPIsaltfrom 2018.3.0rc1 · before 2018.3.52018.3.5
PyPIsaltfrom 2019.2.0 · before 2019.2.52019.2.5
PyPIsaltfrom 2019.2.0 · before 2019.2.62019.2.6
PyPIsaltfrom 3000 · before 3000.33000.3
PyPIsaltfrom 3000.0 · before 3000.43000.4
PyPIsaltfrom 3001 · before 3001.23001.2

+42

Same product

saltstack: all records

Other highest-scoring records for the same primary product.

  • CVE-2020-11651An issue was discovered in SaltStack Salt before 2019.2.4 and 3000 before 3000.2.KEV
    98Now
  • CVE-2020-11652An issue was discovered in SaltStack Salt before 2019.2.4 and 3000 before 3000.2.KEV
    82Now
  • CVE-2021-25282An issue was discovered in through SaltStack Salt before 3002.5.
    64This week

Published before and after this one in the same product

  • ← EarlierCVE-2018-15751Oct 24, 2018 · SaltStack Salt before 2017.7.8 and 2018.3.x before 2018.3.3 allow remote attackers to bypass authentication and execute arbitrary commands…
    40Plan
  • ← EarlierCVE-2019-17361Jan 16, 2020 · In SaltStack Salt through 2019.2.0, the salt-api NET API with the ssh client enabled is vulnerable to command injection.
    44Plan
  • Later →CVE-2020-17490Nov 6, 2020 · The TLS module within SaltStack Salt through 3002 creates certificates with weak file permissions.
    22Monitor

Remediation

Which version to upgrade to

Fix versions compiled from the vendor, package registries and Microsoft. Verify the vendor's note before upgrading.

Product / packageFixed versionSource
alpine:salt3002-r1 · Alpine:v3.13Package registry (OSV)
debian:salt2016.11.2+ds-1+deb9u6 · Debian:9Package registry (OSV)
opensuse:salt3000-lp152.3.15.1 · openSUSE:Leap 15.2Package registry (OSV)
PyPI:salt2015.8.10Package registry (OSV)
PyPI:salt2015.8.13Package registry (OSV)
PyPI:salt2016.11.10Package registry (OSV)
PyPI:salt2016.11.3Package registry (OSV)
PyPI:salt2016.11.6Package registry (OSV)
PyPI:salt2016.3.4Package registry (OSV)
PyPI:salt2016.3.6Package registry (OSV)
PyPI:salt2016.3.8Package registry (OSV)
PyPI:salt2017.7.4Package registry (OSV)
PyPI:salt2017.7.8Package registry (OSV)
PyPI:salt2018.3.5Package registry (OSV)
PyPI:salt2019.2.5Package registry (OSV)
PyPI:salt2019.2.6Package registry (OSV)
PyPI:salt3000.3Package registry (OSV)
PyPI:salt3000.4Package registry (OSV)
PyPI:salt3001.2Package registry (OSV)
PyPI:salt3002.1Package registry (OSV)
suse:bind-formula0.1.1603299886.60e4bcf-3.3.2 · SUSE:Manager Server Module 4.1Package registry (OSV)
suse:cobbler2.2.2-0.68.12.1 · SUSE:Linux Enterprise Server 11 SP3-CLIENT-TOOLSPackage registry (OSV)
suse:grafana-formula0.3.0-3.3.2 · SUSE:Manager Server Module 4.1Package registry (OSV)
suse:image-sync-formula0.1.1602150122.f08af0a-3.6.2 · SUSE:Manager Server Module 4.1Package registry (OSV)
suse:mgr-daemon4.1.3-5.20.1 · SUSE:Linux Enterprise Server 11 SP3-CLIENT-TOOLSPackage registry (OSV)
suse:prometheus-exporters-formula0.8.0-3.16.2 · SUSE:Manager Server Module 4.1Package registry (OSV)
suse:salt2016.11.10-43.63.1 · SUSE:Linux Enterprise Server 11 SP3-CLIENT-TOOLSPackage registry (OSV)
suse:spacecmd4.1.8-18.72.1 · SUSE:Linux Enterprise Server 11 SP3-CLIENT-TOOLSPackage registry (OSV)
suse:spacewalk-backend4.1.16-4.11.5 · SUSE:Manager Proxy Module 4.1Package registry (OSV)
suse:spacewalk-client-tools4.1.7-27.38.1 · SUSE:Linux Enterprise Server 11 SP3-CLIENT-TOOLSPackage registry (OSV)

+2

Exploit status

Weaponized

A ready exploit tool or active in-the-wild use is known for this vulnerability. This should be your top priority.

Evidence

  • Metasploit module ×1
  • Nuclei detection template ×1
  • Proof-of-concept repository on GitHub ×2

Noroxi does not host or link to exploit code. Metasploit module names and Nuclei template ids are shown (names, not code); Exploit-DB entries and PoC repositories are given as counts only.

Public exploit evidence
SourceKindDate
Metasploit moduleexploit/linux/http/saltstack_salt_api_cmd_execSaltStack Salt REST API Arbitrary Command Executionexploit2020-11-03
Nuclei detection templateNuclei template CVE-2020-16846 —
Proof-of-concept repository on GitHubstars:02021-10-14
Proof-of-concept repository on GitHubstars:02022-12-12

Research context

For pentesters and researchers: attack profile, score disagreement, timeline, patch commits, credits, variant and chain candidates, bug bounty scope. All derived from existing data; no exploit code.

Timeline

From publication to today: proof of concept, Metasploit module, CISA KEV and fix record. Dates are as reported by the sources.

  1. Metasploit-3 d
  2. Published
  3. First PoC+342 d
  4. CISA KEV+362 d
  5. TodayNov 14, 2026+2199 d

National notice (Türkiye Cybersecurity Directorate / USOM)

Official security notices citing this record; remediation advice is on the agency's page.

All national notices →

Not on record for this CVE: EPSS history · patch commit or PR link · researcher credit · variant or chain candidate · public bounty program.

Technical details

Attack conditions

  • Anyone who can reach it over the internet can trigger it.
  • No account or password is required.
  • No user action is required.
  • No special conditions are required; it is repeatable.

If successful

Confidentiality
high · data can be read
Integrity
high · data or configuration can be modified
Availability
high · the service can be disrupted
Attack vector
Network
Attack complexity
Low
Privileges required
None
User interaction
None
Scope
Unchanged
Confidentiality impact
High
Integrity impact
High
Availability impact
High

Weakness class (CWE)

CWE-78 · Improper Neutralization of Special Elements used in an OS Command ('OS Command Injection')

CVSS vector

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

nvd-primary

Root cause

User input is inserted as text into a shell command. The shell may interpret special characters in the input as part of the command.

The bug in code

The whole CWE-78 class

A representative example of this vulnerability class. Not the vendor's source code; it shows the faulty pattern and its fix.

Vulnerable

ts
const host = req.body.host;exec("ping -c 1 " + host, onResult);

Fixed

ts
const host = req.body.host;if (!/^[a-z0-9.-]{1,253}$/i.test(host)) return res.sendStatus(400);execFile("ping", ["-c", "1", host], onResult);

Attack context

MITRE CAPEC attack patterns and ATT&CK techniques for this weakness class (CWE). A starting point for detection rules and threat hunting.

ATT&CK techniques

—

References

Show all references (13 more)

Vendor advisories and official records. Exploit/PoC links are deliberately left out.

All records