CVE-2020-11501: Software Security Vulnerability Vulnerability

MODERATE
Advisory Identifier: GHSA-j883-wjrw-g444
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CVSS 7.4
CWE-327 CWE-330
Published
Advisory Summary

CVE-2020-11501 is a MODERATE (CVSS 7.4) security vulnerability vulnerability (CWE-327: Use of a Broken or Risky Cryptographic Algorithm) affecting Software libraries in the Maven ecosystem. The weakness occurs when the product uses a broken or risky cryptographic algorithm or protocol.. Remediation is available in the latest vendor maintenance releases.

CVE-2020-11501 at a Glance

CVE Identifier CVE-2020-11501
GHSA Identifier GHSA-j883-wjrw-g444
Severity MODERATE
CVSS v3.1 Base Score 7.4
CWE Classification CWE-327: Use of a Broken or Risky Cryptographic Algorithm
Affected Product Software
Package Ecosystem Maven
Published Date
Last Updated

Security Impact

CVSS: 7.4

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:U/C:H/I:H/A:N).

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

How to Fix CVE-2020-11501

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

Verify Direct and Transitive Dependencies

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

mvn dependency:tree

How to Check if You Are Affected

To determine whether your Java application is affected by CVE-2020-11501, inspect your build dependencies using the Maven Dependency Plugin:

mvn dependency:tree

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

Note: The mvn dependency:tree command inspects the resolved dependency graph declared in your project's POM files; it does not perform automated security scanning or inspect runtime dynamic classpaths. Always verify runtime container classpaths and shaded JARs.

Technical Details

Vulnerability Mechanism & Technical Analysis

This vulnerability is classified under CWE-327: Use of a Broken or Risky Cryptographic Algorithm, where the product uses a broken or risky cryptographic algorithm or protocol. In Software, 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

GnuTLS 3.6.x before 3.6.13 uses incorrect cryptography for DTLS. The earliest affected version is 3.6.3 (2018-07-16) because of an error in a 2017-10-06 commit. The DTLS client always uses 32 '\0' bytes instead of a random value, and thus contributes no randomness to a DTLS negotiation. This breaks the security guarantees of the DTLS protocol.

References

NVD — CVE-2020-11501 NVD
https://nvd.nist.gov/vuln/detail/CVE-2020-11501
cert-portal.siemens.com/productcert/html/ss... WEB
https://cert-portal.siemens.com/productcert/html/ssa-398330.html
gitlab.com/gnutls/gnutls/-/com... WEB
https://gitlab.com/gnutls/gnutls/-/commit/5b595e8e52653f6c5726a4cdd8fddeb6e83804d2
gitlab.com/gnutls/gnutls/-/iss... WEB
https://gitlab.com/gnutls/gnutls/-/issues/960
lists.fedoraproject.org/archives/list/packa... WEB
https://lists.fedoraproject.org/archives/list/package-announce%40lists.fedoraproject.org/message/ILMOWPKMTZAIMK5F32TUMO34XCABUCFJ
lists.fedoraproject.org/archives/list/packa... WEB
https://lists.fedoraproject.org/archives/list/package-announce%40lists.fedoraproject.org/message/WDYY3R4F5CUTFAMXH2C5NKYFVDEJLTT7
lists.fedoraproject.org/archives/list/packa... WEB
https://lists.fedoraproject.org/archives/list/package-announce@lists.fedoraproject.org/message/ILMOWPKMTZAIMK5F32TUMO34XCABUCFJ
lists.fedoraproject.org/archives/list/packa... WEB
https://lists.fedoraproject.org/archives/list/package-announce@lists.fedoraproject.org/message/WDYY3R4F5CUTFAMXH2C5NKYFVDEJLTT7
Software Security Information SECURITY
https://security.gentoo.org/glsa/202004-06
Software Security Information SECURITY
https://security.netapp.com/advisory/ntap-20200416-0002
usn.ubuntu.com/4322-1 WEB
https://usn.ubuntu.com/4322-1
Software Security Information SECURITY
https://www.debian.org/security/2020/dsa-4652
Software Security Information SECURITY
https://www.gnutls.org/security-new.html#GNUTLS-SA-2020-03-31
Software Security Information SECURITY
http://lists.opensuse.org/opensuse-security-announce/2020-04/msg00015.html

Frequently Asked Questions

What is CVE-2020-11501?
CVE-2020-11501 is a security vulnerability in Software classified as a security vulnerability vulnerability under CWE-327: Use of a Broken or Risky Cryptographic Algorithm.
Which Software versions are affected?
Affected versions include releases prior to current release patches.
What version fixes CVE-2020-11501?
Upgrading to current release patches (or the latest patched release for your respective branch) resolves the vulnerability.
What is the CVSS score of CVE-2020-11501?
CVE-2020-11501 has a CVSS v3.1 base score of 7.4 (MODERATE) with vector string CVSS:3.1/AV:N/AC:H/PR:N/UI:N/S:U/C:H/I:H/A:N.
What CWE is associated with CVE-2020-11501?
CVE-2020-11501 is classified under CWE-327: Use of a Broken or Risky Cryptographic Algorithm (The product uses a broken or risky cryptographic algorithm or protocol.).
How can I check Maven dependencies for CVE-2020-11501?
Run the dependency tree command: 'mvn dependency:tree'. 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-j883-wjrw-g444",
  "modified" : "2026-10-14T09:31:27Z",
  "published" : "2022-05-24T17:13:21Z",
  "aliases" : [ "CVE-2020-11501" ],
  "details" : "GnuTLS 3.6.x before 3.6.13 uses incorrect cryptography for DTLS. The earliest affected version is 3.6.3 (2018-07-16) because of an error in a 2017-10-06 commit. The DTLS client always uses 32 '\\0' bytes instead of a random value, and thus contributes no randomness to a DTLS negotiation. This breaks the security guarantees of the DTLS protocol.",
  "severity" : [ {
    "type" : "CVSS_V3",
    "score" : "CVSS:3.1/AV:N/AC:H/PR:N/UI:N/S:U/C:H/I:H/A:N"
  } ],
  "affected" : [ ],
  "references" : [ {
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  }, {
    "type" : "WEB",
    "url" : "https://cert-portal.siemens.com/productcert/html/ssa-398330.html"
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    "url" : "https://gitlab.com/gnutls/gnutls/-/commit/5b595e8e52653f6c5726a4cdd8fddeb6e83804d2"
  }, {
    "type" : "WEB",
    "url" : "https://gitlab.com/gnutls/gnutls/-/issues/960"
  }, {
    "type" : "WEB",
    "url" : "https://lists.fedoraproject.org/archives/list/package-announce%40lists.fedoraproject.org/message/ILMOWPKMTZAIMK5F32TUMO34XCABUCFJ"
  }, {
    "type" : "WEB",
    "url" : "https://lists.fedoraproject.org/archives/list/package-announce%40lists.fedoraproject.org/message/WDYY3R4F5CUTFAMXH2C5NKYFVDEJLTT7"
  }, {
    "type" : "WEB",
    "url" : "https://lists.fedoraproject.org/archives/list/package-announce@lists.fedoraproject.org/message/ILMOWPKMTZAIMK5F32TUMO34XCABUCFJ"
  }, {
    "type" : "WEB",
    "url" : "https://lists.fedoraproject.org/archives/list/package-announce@lists.fedoraproject.org/message/WDYY3R4F5CUTFAMXH2C5NKYFVDEJLTT7"
  }, {
    "type" : "WEB",
    "url" : "https://security.gentoo.org/glsa/202004-06"
  }, {
    "type" : "WEB",
    "url" : "https://security.netapp.com/advisory/ntap-20200416-0002"
  }, {
    "type" : "WEB",
    "url" : "https://usn.ubuntu.com/4322-1"
  }, {
    "type" : "WEB",
    "url" : "https://www.debian.org/security/2020/dsa-4652"
  }, {
    "type" : "WEB",
    "url" : "https://www.gnutls.org/security-new.html#GNUTLS-SA-2020-03-31"
  }, {
    "type" : "WEB",
    "url" : "http://lists.opensuse.org/opensuse-security-announce/2020-04/msg00015.html"
  } ],
  "database_specific" : {
    "cwe_ids" : [ "CWE-327", "CWE-330" ],
    "severity" : "MODERATE",
    "github_reviewed" : false,
    "github_reviewed_at" : null,
    "nvd_published_at" : "2020-04-03T13:15:00Z"
  }
}