CVE-2020-22083: Jsonpickle Jsonpickle Unsafe Deserialization Vulnerability

CRITICAL
Advisory Identifier: GHSA-j66q-qmrc-89rx
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CVSS 9.8
CWE-502
Published
Advisory Summary

CVE-2020-22083 is a CRITICAL (CVSS 9.8) jsonpickle unsafe deserialization vulnerability (CWE-502: Deserialization of Untrusted Data) affecting Jsonpickle libraries in the PyPI ecosystem. The issue involves jsonpickle unsafe deserialization. Remediation is available in the latest vendor maintenance releases.

CVE-2020-22083 at a Glance

CVE Identifier CVE-2020-22083
GHSA Identifier GHSA-j66q-qmrc-89rx
Severity CRITICAL
CVSS v3.1 Base Score 9.8
CWE Classification CWE-502: Deserialization of Untrusted Data
Affected Product Jsonpickle
Package Ecosystem PyPI
Published Date
Last Updated

Security Impact

CVSS: 9.8

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

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

How to Fix CVE-2020-22083

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

jsonpickle fixed: Latest secure release 
pip install jsonpickle>=Latest secure release
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 jsonpickle

How to Check if You Are Affected

To determine whether your Python environment is affected by CVE-2020-22083, inspect your installed packages using pip:

pip show jsonpickle

Analyze the terminal output to locate any version of Jsonpickle 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 pip show jsonpickle command checks currently installed packages in your active Python environment.

Technical Details

Vulnerability Mechanism & Technical Analysis

This vulnerability is classified under CWE-502: Deserialization of Untrusted Data, where the product deserializes untrusted data without sufficiently ensuring that the resulting data will be valid. In Jsonpickle, 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

jsonpickle through 1.4.2 allows remote code execution during deserialization of a malicious payload through the `decode()` function. This CVE is disputed by the project author as intended functionality.

CVE-2020-22083 Affected Jsonpickle Versions

1 component(s)
Product / Package Ecosystem Affected Versions Fixed Version
jsonpickle
pypi/jsonpickle
PyPI
≤ 1.4.2

References

NVD — CVE-2020-22083 NVD
https://nvd.nist.gov/vuln/detail/CVE-2020-22083
Jsonpickle Source Repository REPOSITORY
https://github.com/jsonpickle/jsonpickle/issues/332
Jsonpickle Source Repository REPOSITORY
https://github.com/jsonpickle/jsonpickle/issues/332#issuecomment-747807494
Jsonpickle Source Repository REPOSITORY
https://github.com/jsonpickle/jsonpickle/issues/335
Jsonpickle Security Information SECURITY
https://access.redhat.com/security/cve/CVE-2020-22083
Jsonpickle Source Repository REPOSITORY
https://gist.github.com/j0lt-github/bb543e77a1a10c33cb56cf23d0837874
Jsonpickle Source Repository REPOSITORY
https://github.com/j0lt-github/python-deserialization-attack-payload-generator
Jsonpickle Source Repository REPOSITORY
https://github.com/jsonpickle/jsonpickle
Jsonpickle Source Repository REPOSITORY
https://github.com/pypa/advisory-database/tree/main/vulns/jsonpickle/PYSEC-2020-49.yaml
Jsonpickle Security Information SECURITY
https://versprite.com/blog/application-security/into-the-jar-jsonpickle-exploitation

Frequently Asked Questions

What is CVE-2020-22083?
CVE-2020-22083 is a security vulnerability in Jsonpickle involving jsonpickle unsafe deserialization under CWE-502: Deserialization of Untrusted Data.
Which Jsonpickle versions are affected?
Affected versions include releases prior to current release patches across affected packages: jsonpickle.
What version fixes CVE-2020-22083?
Upgrading to current release patches (or the latest patched release for your respective branch) resolves the vulnerability.
Is jsonpickle affected?
Yes, jsonpickle is affected in releases prior to Latest secure release. Upgrade your dependency to Latest secure release or later.
What is the CVSS score of CVE-2020-22083?
CVE-2020-22083 has a CVSS v3.1 base score of 9.8 (CRITICAL) with vector string CVSS:3.1/AV:N/AC:L/PR:N/UI:N/S:U/C:H/I:H/A:H.
What CWE is associated with CVE-2020-22083?
CVE-2020-22083 is classified under CWE-502: Deserialization of Untrusted Data (The product deserializes untrusted data without sufficiently ensuring that the resulting data will be valid.).
How can I check PyPI dependencies for CVE-2020-22083?
Run the dependency tree command: 'pip show jsonpickle'. 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-j66q-qmrc-89rx",
  "modified" : "2024-09-24T20:58:28Z",
  "published" : "2022-05-24T17:36:44Z",
  "aliases" : [ "CVE-2020-22083" ],
  "summary" : "jsonpickle unsafe deserialization",
  "details" : "jsonpickle through 1.4.2 allows remote code execution during deserialization of a malicious payload through the `decode()` function. This CVE is disputed by the project author as intended functionality.",
  "severity" : [ {
    "type" : "CVSS_V3",
    "score" : "CVSS:3.1/AV:N/AC:L/PR:N/UI:N/S:U/C:H/I:H/A:H"
  }, {
    "type" : "CVSS_V4",
    "score" : "CVSS:4.0/AV:N/AC:L/AT:N/PR:N/UI:N/VC:H/VI:H/VA:H/SC:N/SI:N/SA:N"
  } ],
  "affected" : [ {
    "package" : {
      "ecosystem" : "PyPI",
      "name" : "jsonpickle"
    },
    "ranges" : [ {
      "type" : "ECOSYSTEM",
      "events" : [ {
        "introduced" : "0"
      }, {
        "last_affected" : "1.4.2"
      } ]
    } ]
  } ],
  "references" : [ {
    "type" : "ADVISORY",
    "url" : "https://nvd.nist.gov/vuln/detail/CVE-2020-22083"
  }, {
    "type" : "WEB",
    "url" : "https://github.com/jsonpickle/jsonpickle/issues/332"
  }, {
    "type" : "WEB",
    "url" : "https://github.com/jsonpickle/jsonpickle/issues/332#issuecomment-747807494"
  }, {
    "type" : "WEB",
    "url" : "https://github.com/jsonpickle/jsonpickle/issues/335"
  }, {
    "type" : "WEB",
    "url" : "https://access.redhat.com/security/cve/CVE-2020-22083"
  }, {
    "type" : "WEB",
    "url" : "https://gist.github.com/j0lt-github/bb543e77a1a10c33cb56cf23d0837874"
  }, {
    "type" : "WEB",
    "url" : "https://github.com/j0lt-github/python-deserialization-attack-payload-generator"
  }, {
    "type" : "PACKAGE",
    "url" : "https://github.com/jsonpickle/jsonpickle"
  }, {
    "type" : "WEB",
    "url" : "https://github.com/pypa/advisory-database/tree/main/vulns/jsonpickle/PYSEC-2020-49.yaml"
  }, {
    "type" : "WEB",
    "url" : "https://versprite.com/blog/application-security/into-the-jar-jsonpickle-exploitation"
  } ],
  "database_specific" : {
    "cwe_ids" : [ "CWE-502" ],
    "severity" : "CRITICAL",
    "github_reviewed" : true,
    "github_reviewed_at" : "2024-02-01T20:58:40Z",
    "nvd_published_at" : "2020-12-17T16:15:00Z"
  }
}