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TI-2018-14520 Aliases CVE-2018-20483GHSA-mxm6-6r3r-6wj4

set_file_metadata in xattr.c in GNU Wget before 1.20.1 stores a file's origin URL in the…

Priority LOW 35CWE-200Published · Updated

Key facts

Attack vector
Local
Privileges required
Low
User interaction
None
Attack complexity
Low
Impact type
Information disclosure
Confidentiality · integrity · availability
High · High · High
Fix status
Partial Red Hat: 1 fixed, 1 without a fix

Attack profile from CVSS 3.0 · NVD. Fix status from CNA and Red Hat. Impact type from CWE-200.

Summary

set_file_metadata in xattr.c in GNU Wget before 1.20.1 stores a file's origin URL in the user.xdg.origin.url metadata attribute of the extended attributes of the downloaded file, which allows local users to obtain sensitive information (e.g., credentials contained in the URL) by reading this attribute, as demonstrated by getfattr. This also applies to Referer information in the user.xdg.referrer.url metadata attribute. According to 2016-07-22 in the Wget ChangeLog, user.xdg.origin.url was partially based on the behavior of fwrite_xattr in tool_xattr.c in curl.

Why it matters now

EPSS 0.00659 51st percentileScored 2026-11-07
Public exploit Yes 1 exploit referenceTagged by NVD
Fix Partial Red Hat: 1 advisoryRed Hat: 1 fixed, 1 without a fix

SSVC decision points

Not available: CISA has not published SSVC decision points for this record.

Affected products

VendorProductAffected versionsFixed inStatusSource
——all versions—No fix listedCNA
  • — Vendor— Affected all versions Fixed in — No fix listed CNA

CPE configurations NVD · 1

CPEVersionsRoleVendor
cpe:2.3:a:gnu:wget:*:*:*:*:*:*:*:*before 1.20.1VulnerableGNU
  • cpe:2.3:a:gnu:wget:*:*:*:*:*:*:*:* Versions before 1.20.1 Vulnerable ·GNU

Remediation

Red Hat 1 advisory

  • RHSA-2019:3701 Released 2019-11-05 · Red Hat rating Moderate
    curl security and bug fix update
    • Red Hat Enterprise Linux BaseOS (v. 8) curl-7.61.1-11.el8, libcurl-7.61.1-11.el8, libcurl-devel-7.61.1-11.el8 +1

Vendor assessments

Red Hat

Red Hat rating: Moderate. Red Hat's page for this CVE →

ProductStatusPlan or fix
Red Hat Enterprise Linux 7AffectedNo fix planned: Will not fix
Red Hat Enterprise Linux BaseOS (v. 8)Fixed RHSA-2019:3701
Not affected: 4 products
  • Red Hat Enterprise Linux 5
  • Red Hat Enterprise Linux 6
  • Red Hat Enterprise Linux 7
  • Red Hat Enterprise Linux 8

Timeline

  1. 2026-10-02 Threatist record created from CVE-2018-20483
  2. 2026-10-03 Alias added: GHSA-mxm6-6r3r-6wj4
  3. 2026-10-09 EPSS moved to the 50th–90th percentile

References

Exploit 1

Advisory 4

Other 1

  • TI-2017-09727 GNU Wget: stack overflow in HTTP protocol handling CVSS 3.0HIGH 8.8
  • TI-2016-04293 GNU wget before 1.18 allows remote servers to write to arbitrary files by redirecting a… CVSS 3.1HIGH 8.8
  • TI-2014-04014 Absolute path traversal vulnerability in GNU Wget before 1.16, when recursion is enabled… CVSS 2.0HIGH 9.3
  • TI-2017-09728 GNU Wget: heap overflow in HTTP protocol handling CVSS 3.0HIGH 8.8
  • TI-2019-04244 Out-of-bounds write in GNU Wget CVSS 3.0CRITICAL 9.8
  • TI-2016-06103 Race condition in wget 1.17 and earlier, when used in recursive or mirroring mode to… CVSS 3.0HIGH 8.1
See all 22 →

Sources

This product uses the NVD API but is not endorsed or certified by the NVD. Sources and licences