CVE-2020-1740: Ansible Exposure Of Sensitive Information To Vulnerability

MODERATE
Advisory Identifier: GHSA-vcg8-98q8-g7mj
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CVSS 4.7
CWE-377 CWE-200
Published
Advisory Summary

CVE-2020-1740 is a MODERATE (CVSS 4.7) exposure of sensitive information to vulnerability (CWE-377: Insecure Temporary File) affecting Ansible libraries in the PyPI ecosystem. The issue involves exposure of sensitive information to an unauthorized actor and insecure temporary file in ansible. Remediation is available by upgrading affected packages to version 2.7.17, 2.8.11, 2.9.7.

CVE-2020-1740 at a Glance

CVE Identifier CVE-2020-1740
GHSA Identifier GHSA-vcg8-98q8-g7mj
Severity MODERATE
CVSS v3.1 Base Score 4.7
CWE Classification CWE-377: Insecure Temporary File
Affected Product Ansible
Package Ecosystem PyPI
Published Date
Last Updated

Security Impact

CVSS: 4.7

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

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

How to Fix CVE-2020-1740

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

ansible fixed: 2.7.17 
pip install ansible>=2.7.17
ansible fixed: 2.8.11 
pip install ansible>=2.8.11
ansible fixed: 2.9.7 
pip install ansible>=2.9.7
Verify Direct and Transitive Dependencies

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

pip show ansible

How to Check if You Are Affected

To determine whether your Python environment is affected by CVE-2020-1740, inspect your installed packages using pip:

pip show ansible

Analyze the terminal output to locate any version of Ansible in your dependency tree. If any resolved version matches the vulnerable ranges listed in the table below (for example, versions earlier than 2.7.17), your application is affected.

Note: The pip show ansible command checks currently installed packages in your active Python environment.

Technical Details

Vulnerability Mechanism & Technical Analysis

This vulnerability is classified under CWE-377: Insecure Temporary File, where creating and using insecure temporary files can leave application and system data vulnerable to attack. In Ansible, 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

A flaw was found in Ansible Engine when using Ansible Vault for editing encrypted files. When a user executes "ansible-vault edit", another user on the same computer can read the old and new secret, as it is created in a temporary file with mkstemp and the returned file descriptor is closed and the method write_data is called to write the existing secret in the file. This method will delete the file before recreating it insecurely. All versions in 2.7.x, 2.8.x and 2.9.x branches are believed to be vulnerable.

CVE-2020-1740 Affected Ansible Versions

3 component(s)
Fixed Versions:
2.7.172.8.112.9.7
Product / Package Ecosystem Affected Versions Fixed Version
ansible
pypi/ansible
PyPI
< 2.7.17
2.7.17
ansible
pypi/ansible
PyPI
≥ 2.8.0a1
< 2.8.11
2.8.11
ansible
pypi/ansible
PyPI
≥ 2.9.0a1
< 2.9.7
2.9.7

References

NVD — CVE-2020-1740 NVD
https://nvd.nist.gov/vuln/detail/CVE-2020-1740
Ansible Source Repository REPOSITORY
https://github.com/ansible/ansible/issues/67798
Security Fix Commit FIX COMMIT
https://github.com/ansible/ansible/commit/28f9fbdb5e281976e33f443193047068afb97a9b
Security Fix Commit FIX COMMIT
https://github.com/ansible/ansible/commit/2a563514f070a0a8ba64aebf6bce21194be96c73
Security Fix Commit FIX COMMIT
https://github.com/ansible/ansible/commit/685a4b6d3ff72186d2b4ffce73172a5446a71ccc
Security Fix Commit FIX COMMIT
https://github.com/ansible/ansible/commit/ef32a5bf96a89107986375516285253c1380d7ef
bugzilla.redhat.com/show_bug.cgi WEB
https://bugzilla.redhat.com/show_bug.cgi?id=CVE-2020-1740
GitHub Advisory / Wiki ADVISORY
https://github.com/advisories/GHSA-vcg8-98q8-g7mj
Ansible Source Repository REPOSITORY
https://github.com/ansible/ansible
Ansible Source Repository REPOSITORY
https://github.com/pypa/advisory-database/tree/main/vulns/ansible/PYSEC-2020-12.yaml
lists.debian.org/debian-lts-announce... WEB
https://lists.debian.org/debian-lts-announce/2020/05/msg00005.html
lists.fedoraproject.org/archives/list/packa... WEB
https://lists.fedoraproject.org/archives/list/package-announce@lists.fedoraproject.org/message/DKPA4KC3OJSUFASUYMG66HKJE7ADNGFW
lists.fedoraproject.org/archives/list/packa... WEB
https://lists.fedoraproject.org/archives/list/package-announce@lists.fedoraproject.org/message/MRRYUU5ZBLPBXCYG6CFP35D64NP2UB2S
lists.fedoraproject.org/archives/list/packa... WEB
https://lists.fedoraproject.org/archives/list/package-announce@lists.fedoraproject.org/message/WQVOQD4VAIXXTVQAJKTN7NUGTJFE2PCB
Ansible Security Information SECURITY
https://security.gentoo.org/glsa/202006-11

Frequently Asked Questions

What is CVE-2020-1740?
CVE-2020-1740 is a security vulnerability in Ansible involving Exposure of Sensitive Information to an Unauthorized Actor and Insecure Temporary File in Ansible under CWE-377: Insecure Temporary File.
Which Ansible versions are affected?
Affected versions include releases prior to 2.7.17, 2.8.11, 2.9.7 across affected packages: ansible.
What version fixes CVE-2020-1740?
Upgrading to 2.7.17, 2.8.11, 2.9.7 (or the latest patched release for your respective branch) resolves the vulnerability.
Is ansible affected?
Yes, ansible is affected in releases prior to 2.7.17, 2.8.11, 2.9.7. Upgrade your dependency to 2.7.17, 2.8.11, 2.9.7 or later.
What is the CVSS score of CVE-2020-1740?
CVE-2020-1740 has a CVSS v3.1 base score of 4.7 (MODERATE) with vector string CVSS:3.1/AV:L/AC:H/PR:L/UI:N/S:U/C:H/I:N/A:N.
What CWE is associated with CVE-2020-1740?
CVE-2020-1740 is classified under CWE-377: Insecure Temporary File (Creating and using insecure temporary files can leave application and system data vulnerable to attack.).
How can I check PyPI dependencies for CVE-2020-1740?
Run the dependency tree command: 'pip show ansible'. 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-vcg8-98q8-g7mj",
  "modified" : "2024-09-04T20:42:49Z",
  "published" : "2021-04-07T21:47:31Z",
  "aliases" : [ "CVE-2020-1740" ],
  "summary" : "Exposure of Sensitive Information to an Unauthorized Actor and Insecure Temporary File in Ansible",
  "details" : "A flaw was found in Ansible Engine when using Ansible Vault for editing encrypted files. When a user executes \"ansible-vault edit\", another user on the same computer can read the old and new secret, as it is created in a temporary file with mkstemp and the returned file descriptor is closed and the method write_data is called to write the existing secret in the file. This method will delete the file before recreating it insecurely. All versions in 2.7.x, 2.8.x and 2.9.x branches are believed to be vulnerable.",
  "severity" : [ {
    "type" : "CVSS_V3",
    "score" : "CVSS:3.1/AV:L/AC:H/PR:L/UI:N/S:U/C:H/I:N/A:N"
  }, {
    "type" : "CVSS_V4",
    "score" : "CVSS:4.0/AV:L/AC:L/AT:P/PR:L/UI:N/VC:H/VI:N/VA:N/SC:N/SI:N/SA:N"
  } ],
  "affected" : [ {
    "package" : {
      "ecosystem" : "PyPI",
      "name" : "ansible"
    },
    "ranges" : [ {
      "type" : "ECOSYSTEM",
      "events" : [ {
        "introduced" : "0"
      }, {
        "fixed" : "2.7.17"
      } ]
    } ]
  }, {
    "package" : {
      "ecosystem" : "PyPI",
      "name" : "ansible"
    },
    "ranges" : [ {
      "type" : "ECOSYSTEM",
      "events" : [ {
        "introduced" : "2.8.0a1"
      }, {
        "fixed" : "2.8.11"
      } ]
    } ]
  }, {
    "package" : {
      "ecosystem" : "PyPI",
      "name" : "ansible"
    },
    "ranges" : [ {
      "type" : "ECOSYSTEM",
      "events" : [ {
        "introduced" : "2.9.0a1"
      }, {
        "fixed" : "2.9.7"
      } ]
    } ]
  } ],
  "references" : [ {
    "type" : "ADVISORY",
    "url" : "https://nvd.nist.gov/vuln/detail/CVE-2020-1740"
  }, {
    "type" : "WEB",
    "url" : "https://github.com/ansible/ansible/issues/67798"
  }, {
    "type" : "WEB",
    "url" : "https://github.com/ansible/ansible/commit/28f9fbdb5e281976e33f443193047068afb97a9b"
  }, {
    "type" : "WEB",
    "url" : "https://github.com/ansible/ansible/commit/2a563514f070a0a8ba64aebf6bce21194be96c73"
  }, {
    "type" : "WEB",
    "url" : "https://github.com/ansible/ansible/commit/685a4b6d3ff72186d2b4ffce73172a5446a71ccc"
  }, {
    "type" : "WEB",
    "url" : "https://github.com/ansible/ansible/commit/ef32a5bf96a89107986375516285253c1380d7ef"
  }, {
    "type" : "WEB",
    "url" : "https://bugzilla.redhat.com/show_bug.cgi?id=CVE-2020-1740"
  }, {
    "type" : "ADVISORY",
    "url" : "https://github.com/advisories/GHSA-vcg8-98q8-g7mj"
  }, {
    "type" : "PACKAGE",
    "url" : "https://github.com/ansible/ansible"
  }, {
    "type" : "WEB",
    "url" : "https://github.com/pypa/advisory-database/tree/main/vulns/ansible/PYSEC-2020-12.yaml"
  }, {
    "type" : "WEB",
    "url" : "https://lists.debian.org/debian-lts-announce/2020/05/msg00005.html"
  }, {
    "type" : "WEB",
    "url" : "https://lists.fedoraproject.org/archives/list/package-announce@lists.fedoraproject.org/message/DKPA4KC3OJSUFASUYMG66HKJE7ADNGFW"
  }, {
    "type" : "WEB",
    "url" : "https://lists.fedoraproject.org/archives/list/package-announce@lists.fedoraproject.org/message/MRRYUU5ZBLPBXCYG6CFP35D64NP2UB2S"
  }, {
    "type" : "WEB",
    "url" : "https://lists.fedoraproject.org/archives/list/package-announce@lists.fedoraproject.org/message/WQVOQD4VAIXXTVQAJKTN7NUGTJFE2PCB"
  }, {
    "type" : "WEB",
    "url" : "https://security.gentoo.org/glsa/202006-11"
  } ],
  "database_specific" : {
    "cwe_ids" : [ "CWE-200", "CWE-377" ],
    "severity" : "MODERATE",
    "github_reviewed" : true,
    "github_reviewed_at" : "2021-04-05T15:41:07Z",
    "nvd_published_at" : "2020-03-16T16:15:00Z"
  }
}