A flaw was found in Ansible Engine when the module package or service is used and the…
Priority LOW 19CWE-88Published · Updated
Key facts
- Attack vector
- Local
- Privileges required
- Low
- User interaction
- Required
- Attack complexity
- High
- Impact type
- Code execution
- Confidentiality · integrity · availability
- None · Low · Low
- Fix status
- Partial Red Hat: 2 fixed, 7 without a fix
Attack profile from CVSS 3.1 · CNA. Fix status from CNA, GitHub and Red Hat. Impact type from CWE-88.
Summary
A flaw was found in Ansible Engine when the module package or service is used and the parameter 'use' is not specified. If a previous task is executed with a malicious user, the module sent can be selected by the attacker using the ansible facts file. All versions in 2.7.x, 2.8.x and 2.9.x branches are believed to be vulnerable.
Why it matters now
EPSS 0.00396 34th percentileScored 2026-11-07
Fix Partial Red Hat: 2 fixed, 7 without a fix
SSVC decision points
Not available: CISA has not published SSVC decision points for this record.
Affected products
| Vendor | Product | Affected versions | Fixed in | Status | Source |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Red Hat | ansible | 2.7.x, 2.8.x, 2.9.x | — | No fix listed | CNA |
| — | ansible (PyPI) | up to 2.7.16 | — | No fix listed | GHSA-f85h-23mf-2fwh |
| — | ansible (PyPI) | 2.8.0a1 – 2.8.10 | — | No fix listed | GHSA-f85h-23mf-2fwh |
| — | ansible (PyPI) | 2.9.0a1 – 2.9.6 | — | No fix listed | GHSA-f85h-23mf-2fwh |
- ansible VendorRed Hat Affected 2.7.x, 2.8.x, 2.9.x Fixed in — No fix listed CNA
- ansible (PyPI) Vendor— Affected up to 2.7.16 Fixed in — No fix listed GHSA-f85h-23mf-2fwh
- ansible (PyPI) Vendor— Affected 2.8.0a1 – 2.8.10 Fixed in — No fix listed GHSA-f85h-23mf-2fwh
- ansible (PyPI) Vendor— Affected 2.9.0a1 – 2.9.6 Fixed in — No fix listed GHSA-f85h-23mf-2fwh
CPE configurations NVD · 4
| CPE | Versions | Role | Vendor |
|---|---|---|---|
| cpe:2.3:a:redhat:ansible:*:*:*:*:*:*:*:* | up to 2.7.16; 2.8.0 – 2.8.8; 2.9.0 – 2.9.5 | Vulnerable | Red Hat |
| cpe:2.3:a:redhat:ansible_tower:*:*:*:*:*:*:*:* | up to 3.3.4; 3.3.5 – 3.4.5; 3.5.0 – 3.5.5; 3.6.0 – 3.6.3 | Vulnerable | Red Hat |
| cpe:2.3:a:redhat:cloudforms_management_engine:5.0:*:*:*:*:*:*:* | 5.0 | Vulnerable | Red Hat |
| cpe:2.3:a:redhat:openstack:13:*:*:*:*:*:*:* | 13 | Vulnerable | Red Hat |
- cpe:2.3:a:redhat:ansible:*:*:*:*:*:*:*:* Versions up to 2.7.16; 2.8.0 – 2.8.8; 2.9.0 – 2.9.5 Vulnerable ·Red Hat
- cpe:2.3:a:redhat:ansible_tower:*:*:*:*:*:*:*:* Versions up to 3.3.4; 3.3.5 – 3.4.5; 3.5.0 – 3.5.5; 3.6.0 – 3.6.3 Vulnerable ·Red Hat
- cpe:2.3:a:redhat:cloudforms_management_engine:5.0:*:*:*:*:*:*:* Versions 5.0 Vulnerable ·Red Hat
- cpe:2.3:a:redhat:openstack:13:*:*:*:*:*:*:* Versions 13 Vulnerable ·Red Hat
Remediation
No fixed version listed by the sources yet.
Vendor assessments
Red Hat
Red Hat rating: Low. Red Hat's page for this CVE →
| Product | Status | Plan or fix |
|---|---|---|
| Red Hat Ansible Engine 2 | Affected | No fix planned: Will not fix |
| Red Hat Ansible Tower 3 | Affected | No fix planned: Will not fix |
| Red Hat Ceph Storage 2 | Affected | No fix planned: Out of support scope |
| Red Hat Ceph Storage 3 | Affected | No fix yet: Fix deferred |
| Red Hat OpenStack Platform 10 (Newton) | Affected | No fix planned: Out of support scope |
| Red Hat OpenStack Platform 13 (Queens) | Affected | No fix planned: Will not fix |
| Red Hat Storage 3 | Affected | No fix planned: Will not fix |
| Red Hat Ansible Tower 3.4 for RHEL 7 Server | Fixed | — |
| Red Hat Ansible Tower 3.5 for RHEL 7 Server | Fixed | — |
Not affected: 1 product
- CloudForms Management Engine 5
Timeline
- 2026-10-02 Threatist record created from CVE-2020-1738
- 2026-10-03 Alias added: GHSA-f85h-23mf-2fwh
References
Advisory 5
More Red Hat Ansible vulnerabilities
- TI-2016-07808 Improper input validation in Ansible CVSS 3.1HIGH 8.1
- TI-2014-03853 Injection in Ansible CVSS 3.1CRITICAL 9.8
- TI-2014-03839 The safe_eval function in Ansible before 1.5.4 does not properly restrict the code… CVSS 3.1CRITICAL 9.8
- TI-2017-05191 Sensitive information in log files in Red Hat ansible CVSS 3.1CRITICAL 9.8
- TI-2014-04077 Multiple argument injection vulnerabilities in Ansible before 1.6.7 allow remote… CVSS 3.1CRITICAL 9.8
- TI-2014-04076 Ansible before 1.6.7 does not prevent inventory data with "{{" and "lookup" substrings… CVSS 3.1CRITICAL 9.8
Sources
- CVE-2020-1738 · CVE Program
- CVE-2020-1738 · NVD
- FIRST EPSS
- GHSA-f85h-23mf-2fwh · GitHub Advisory Database · CC BY 4.0
- CVE-2020-1738 · Red Hat security data · CC BY 4.0
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