CVE-2020-26272: Electron IPC Messages Delivered To The Vulnerability

MODERATE
Advisory Identifier: GHSA-hvf8-h2qh-37m9
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CVSS 5.4
CWE-668
Published
Advisory Summary

CVE-2020-26272 is a MODERATE (CVSS 5.4) ipc messages delivered to the vulnerability (CWE-668: Exposure of Resource to Wrong Sphere) affecting Electron libraries in the npm ecosystem. The issue involves ipc messages delivered to the wrong frame in electron. Remediation is available by upgrading affected packages to version 9.4.0, 10.2.0, 11.1.0.

CVE-2020-26272 at a Glance

CVE Identifier CVE-2020-26272
GHSA Identifier GHSA-hvf8-h2qh-37m9
Severity MODERATE
CVSS v3.1 Base Score 5.4
CWE Classification CWE-668: Exposure of Resource to Wrong Sphere
Affected Product Electron
Package Ecosystem npm
Published Date
Last Updated

Security Impact

CVSS: 5.4

The security impact metrics below are parsed directly from the CVSS v3.1 vector string (CVSS:3.1/AV:N/AC:H/PR:N/UI:N/S:C/C:L/I:L/A:N).

Attack Vector Network (AV:N)
Attack Complexity High (AC:H)
Privileges Required None (PR:N)
User Interaction None (UI:N)
Scope Changed (S:C)
Confidentiality Low (C:L)
Integrity Low (I:L)
Availability None (A:N)

How to Fix CVE-2020-26272

To remediate this vulnerability, upgrade all affected Electron dependencies to a patched release. Both direct and transitive dependencies should be checked, as frameworks or security libraries may pull in vulnerable versions transitively.

electron fixed: 9.4.0 
npm install electron@9.4.0
electron fixed: 10.2.0 
npm install electron@10.2.0
electron fixed: 11.1.0 
npm install electron@11.1.0
Verify Direct and Transitive Dependencies

Run the following command in your project directory to verify that all resolved dependencies use the patched release: 

npm ls electron

How to Check if You Are Affected

To determine whether your Node.js application is affected by CVE-2020-26272, inspect your project dependencies using npm:

npm ls electron

Analyze the terminal output to locate any version of Electron in your dependency tree. If any resolved version matches the vulnerable ranges listed in the table below (for example, versions earlier than 9.4.0), your application is affected.

Note: The npm ls electron command inspects dependencies declared in your package.json and lockfile; it does not perform automated runtime dynamic scanning.

Technical Details

Vulnerability Mechanism & Technical Analysis

This vulnerability is classified under CWE-668: Exposure of Resource to Wrong Sphere, where the product exposes a resource to the wrong control sphere, providing unintended actors with inappropriate access to the resource. In Electron, software state validation or input boundaries are circumvented during processing. Review the official source advisory statement below for specific affected components, classes, and reproduction details.

Source Advisory Statement

### Impact IPC messages sent from the main process to a subframe in the renderer process, through `webContents.sendToFrame`, `event.reply` or when using the `remote` module, can in some cases be delivered to the wrong frame. If your app does ANY of the following, then it is impacted by this issue: - Uses `remote` - Calls `webContents.sendToFrame` - Calls `event.reply` in an IPC message handler ### Patches This has been fixed in the following versions: - 9.4.0 - 10.2.0 - 11.1.0 - 12.0.0-beta.9 ### Workarounds There are no workarounds for this issue. ### For more information If you have any questions or comments about this advisory, email us at [security@electronjs.org](mailto:security@electronjs.org).

CVE-2020-26272 Affected Electron Versions

3 component(s)
Fixed Versions:
9.4.010.2.011.1.0
Product / Package Ecosystem Affected Versions Fixed Version
electron
npm/electron
npm
< 9.4.0
9.4.0
electron
npm/electron
npm
≥ 10.0.0
< 10.2.0
10.2.0
electron
npm/electron
npm
≥ 11.0.0
< 11.1.0
11.1.0

References

GitHub Advisory / Wiki ADVISORY
https://github.com/electron/electron/security/advisories/GHSA-hvf8-h2qh-37m9
NVD — CVE-2020-26272 NVD
https://nvd.nist.gov/vuln/detail/CVE-2020-26272
Electron Source Repository REPOSITORY
https://github.com/electron/electron/pull/26875
Security Fix Commit FIX COMMIT
https://github.com/electron/electron/commit/07a1c2a3e5845901f7e2eda9506695be58edc73c
Security Fix Commit FIX COMMIT
https://github.com/electron/electron/commit/0bbd268eb4caf35604443df5ff196980dd49e208
Security Fix Commit FIX COMMIT
https://github.com/electron/electron/commit/36c695ce2a7e22c07fe1e30c61c00d20371daee2
Security Fix Commit FIX COMMIT
https://github.com/electron/electron/commit/429400040ecb16a21d19936658579e65a797e4cc
Security Fix Commit FIX COMMIT
https://github.com/electron/electron/commit/5c8e7e8b7f485ceafa8b271086d7b87e1de9dedd
Electron Release RELEASE
https://github.com/electron/electron/releases/tag/v9.4.0
Electron Release RELEASE
https://www.electronjs.org/releases/stable?version=9#9.4.0

Frequently Asked Questions

What is CVE-2020-26272?
CVE-2020-26272 is a security vulnerability in Electron involving IPC messages delivered to the wrong frame in Electron under CWE-668: Exposure of Resource to Wrong Sphere.
Which Electron versions are affected?
Affected versions include releases prior to 9.4.0, 10.2.0, 11.1.0 across affected packages: electron.
What version fixes CVE-2020-26272?
Upgrading to 9.4.0, 10.2.0, 11.1.0 (or the latest patched release for your respective branch) resolves the vulnerability.
Is electron affected?
Yes, electron is affected in releases prior to 9.4.0, 10.2.0, 11.1.0. Upgrade your dependency to 9.4.0, 10.2.0, 11.1.0 or later.
What is the CVSS score of CVE-2020-26272?
CVE-2020-26272 has a CVSS v3.1 base score of 5.4 (MODERATE) with vector string CVSS:3.1/AV:N/AC:H/PR:N/UI:N/S:C/C:L/I:L/A:N.
What CWE is associated with CVE-2020-26272?
CVE-2020-26272 is classified under CWE-668: Exposure of Resource to Wrong Sphere (The product exposes a resource to the wrong control sphere, providing unintended actors with inappropriate access to the resource.).
How can I check npm dependencies for CVE-2020-26272?
Run the dependency tree command: 'npm ls electron'. This command lists direct and transitive dependencies in your build configuration so you can verify if a vulnerable version is resolved.
Machine-readable OSV JSON OSV v1.5 Schema
Normalized schema output
View Raw JSON 
{
  "schema_version" : "1.4.0",
  "id" : "GHSA-hvf8-h2qh-37m9",
  "modified" : "2025-05-27T15:20:19Z",
  "published" : "2021-01-28T19:11:34Z",
  "aliases" : [ "CVE-2020-26272" ],
  "summary" : "IPC messages delivered to the wrong frame in Electron",
  "details" : "### Impact\nIPC messages sent from the main process to a subframe in the renderer process, through `webContents.sendToFrame`, `event.reply` or when using the `remote` module, can in some cases be delivered to the wrong frame.\n\nIf your app does ANY of the following, then it is impacted by this issue:\n- Uses `remote`\n- Calls `webContents.sendToFrame`\n- Calls `event.reply` in an IPC message handler\n\n### Patches\nThis has been fixed in the following versions:\n\n- 9.4.0\n- 10.2.0\n- 11.1.0\n- 12.0.0-beta.9\n\n### Workarounds\nThere are no workarounds for this issue.\n\n### For more information\nIf you have any questions or comments about this advisory, email us at [security@electronjs.org](mailto:security@electronjs.org).",
  "severity" : [ {
    "type" : "CVSS_V3",
    "score" : "CVSS:3.1/AV:N/AC:H/PR:N/UI:N/S:C/C:L/I:L/A:N"
  } ],
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    },
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    } ]
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  "references" : [ {
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  }, {
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    "url" : "https://github.com/electron/electron/pull/26875"
  }, {
    "type" : "WEB",
    "url" : "https://github.com/electron/electron/commit/07a1c2a3e5845901f7e2eda9506695be58edc73c"
  }, {
    "type" : "WEB",
    "url" : "https://github.com/electron/electron/commit/0bbd268eb4caf35604443df5ff196980dd49e208"
  }, {
    "type" : "WEB",
    "url" : "https://github.com/electron/electron/commit/36c695ce2a7e22c07fe1e30c61c00d20371daee2"
  }, {
    "type" : "WEB",
    "url" : "https://github.com/electron/electron/commit/429400040ecb16a21d19936658579e65a797e4cc"
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    "url" : "https://github.com/electron/electron/commit/5c8e7e8b7f485ceafa8b271086d7b87e1de9dedd"
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    "type" : "WEB",
    "url" : "https://github.com/electron/electron/releases/tag/v9.4.0"
  }, {
    "type" : "WEB",
    "url" : "https://www.electronjs.org/releases/stable?version=9#9.4.0"
  } ],
  "database_specific" : {
    "cwe_ids" : [ "CWE-668" ],
    "severity" : "MODERATE",
    "github_reviewed" : true,
    "github_reviewed_at" : "2021-01-28T19:11:05Z",
    "nvd_published_at" : "2021-01-28T19:15:00Z"
  }
}