Information disclosure in Red Hat ansible
Priority LOW 22CWE-377Published · Updated
Key facts
- Attack vector
- Local
- Privileges required
- Low
- User interaction
- None
- Attack complexity
- High
- Impact type
- Information disclosure
- Confidentiality · integrity · availability
- High · None · None
- Fix status
- Partial Red Hat: 9 fixed, 5 without a fix
Attack profile from CVSS 3.1 · NVD. Fix status from CNA, GitHub and Red Hat. Impact type from CWE-200.
Summary
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.
Why it matters now
EPSS 0.0036 29th percentileScored 2026-11-07
Fix Partial ansible (PyPI): 2.7.17, 2.8.11, 2.9.7Red Hat: 4 advisoriesRed Hat: 9 fixed, 5 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) | before 2.7.17 | 2.7.17 | Patch available | GHSA-vcg8-98q8-g7mj |
| — | ansible (PyPI) | 2.8.0a1 to before 2.8.11 | 2.8.11 | Patch available | GHSA-vcg8-98q8-g7mj |
| — | ansible (PyPI) | 2.9.0a1 to before 2.9.7 | 2.9.7 | Patch available | GHSA-vcg8-98q8-g7mj |
- ansible VendorRed Hat Affected 2.7.x, 2.8.x, 2.9.x Fixed in — No fix listed CNA
- ansible (PyPI) Vendor— Affected before 2.7.17 Fixed in 2.7.17 Patch available GHSA-vcg8-98q8-g7mj
- ansible (PyPI) Vendor— Affected 2.8.0a1 to before 2.8.11 Fixed in 2.8.11 Patch available GHSA-vcg8-98q8-g7mj
- ansible (PyPI) Vendor— Affected 2.9.0a1 to before 2.9.7 Fixed in 2.9.7 Patch available GHSA-vcg8-98q8-g7mj
CPE configurations NVD · 9
| CPE | Versions | Role | Vendor |
|---|---|---|---|
| cpe:2.3:a:redhat:ansible:*:*:*:*:*:*:*:* | before 2.7.17; 2.8.0 to before 2.8.11; 2.9.0 to before 2.9.7 | 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:o:debian:debian_linux:8.0:*:*:*:*:*:*:* | 8.0 | Vulnerable | Debian |
| cpe:2.3:o:debian:debian_linux:10.0:*:*:*:*:*:*:* | 10.0 | Vulnerable | Debian |
| cpe:2.3:o:fedoraproject:fedora:30:*:*:*:*:*:*:* | 30 | Vulnerable | Fedoraproject |
| cpe:2.3:o:fedoraproject:fedora:31:*:*:*:*:*:*:* | 31 | Vulnerable | Fedoraproject |
| cpe:2.3:o:fedoraproject:fedora:32:*:*:*:*:*:*:* | 32 | Vulnerable | Fedoraproject |
- cpe:2.3:a:redhat:ansible:*:*:*:*:*:*:*:* Versions before 2.7.17; 2.8.0 to before 2.8.11; 2.9.0 to before 2.9.7 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
- cpe:2.3:o:debian:debian_linux:8.0:*:*:*:*:*:*:* Versions 8.0 Vulnerable ·Debian
- cpe:2.3:o:debian:debian_linux:10.0:*:*:*:*:*:*:* Versions 10.0 Vulnerable ·Debian
- cpe:2.3:o:fedoraproject:fedora:30:*:*:*:*:*:*:* Versions 30 Vulnerable ·Fedoraproject
- cpe:2.3:o:fedoraproject:fedora:31:*:*:*:*:*:*:* Versions 31 Vulnerable ·Fedoraproject
- cpe:2.3:o:fedoraproject:fedora:32:*:*:*:*:*:*:* Versions 32 Vulnerable ·Fedoraproject
Remediation
- Fix · GHSA-vcg8-98q8-g7mj ansible (PyPI) Fixed in 2.7.17 Advisory →
- Fix · GHSA-vcg8-98q8-g7mj ansible (PyPI) Fixed in 2.8.11 Advisory →
- Fix · GHSA-vcg8-98q8-g7mj ansible (PyPI) Fixed in 2.9.7 Advisory →
Red Hat 4 advisories
- RHSA-2020:1543 Released 2020-04-22 · Red Hat rating ImportantAnsible security and bug fix update (2.8.11)
- Red Hat Ansible Engine 2.8 for RHEL 7 Server ansible-2.8.11-1.el7ae
- Red Hat Ansible Engine 2.8 for RHEL 8 ansible-2.8.11-1.el8ae
- RHSA-2020:1544 Released 2020-04-22 · Red Hat rating ImportantAnsible security and bug fix update (2.7.17)
- Red Hat Ansible Engine 2.7 for RHEL 7 Server ansible-2.7.17-1.el7ae
- RHSA-2020:1542 Released 2020-04-22 · Red Hat rating ImportantAnsible security and bug fix update (2.9.7)
- Red Hat Ansible Engine 2 for RHEL 7 ansible-2.9.7-1.el7ae, ansible-test-2.9.7-1.el7ae
- Red Hat Ansible Engine 2 for RHEL 8 ansible-2.9.7-1.el8ae, ansible-test-2.9.7-1.el8ae
Show 1 more Red Hat advisories
- RHSA-2020:1541 Released 2020-04-22 · Red Hat rating ImportantAnsible security and bug fix update (2.9.7)
- Red Hat Ansible Engine 2.9 for RHEL 7 Server ansible-2.9.7-1.el7ae, ansible-test-2.9.7-1.el7ae
- Red Hat Ansible Engine 2.9 for RHEL 8 ansible-2.9.7-1.el8ae, ansible-test-2.9.7-1.el8ae
Fixed in the same release
Records fixed by the same vendor advisory or release, as the CNA lists them.
- Advisory ·
Red Hat Ansible — FEDORA-2020-3990f03ba3
4 records Highest priority Priority LOW 4 LOW
Other records, highest priority first
- TI-2020-01696 Information disclosure in Red Hat AnsiblePriority LOW 25
- TI-2020-01677 Race condition in Red Hat AnsiblePriority LOW 23
- TI-2020-01679 Path traversal in Red Hat ansiblePriority LOW 22
- Advisory ·
Red Hat Ansible — FEDORA-2020-f80154b5b4
4 records Highest priority Priority LOW 4 LOW
Other records, highest priority first
- TI-2020-01696 Information disclosure in Red Hat AnsiblePriority LOW 25
- TI-2020-01677 Race condition in Red Hat AnsiblePriority LOW 23
- TI-2020-01679 Path traversal in Red Hat ansiblePriority LOW 22
Show 1 more group
- Advisory ·
Red Hat Ansible — FEDORA-2020-1b6ce91e37
4 records Highest priority Priority LOW 4 LOW
Other records, highest priority first
- TI-2020-01696 Information disclosure in Red Hat AnsiblePriority LOW 25
- TI-2020-01677 Race condition in Red Hat AnsiblePriority LOW 23
- TI-2020-01679 Path traversal in Red Hat ansiblePriority LOW 22
Vendor assessments
Red Hat
Red Hat rating: Low. Red Hat's page for this CVE →
| Product | Status | Plan or 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 Engine 2 for RHEL 7 | Fixed | RHSA-2020:1542 |
| Red Hat Ansible Engine 2 for RHEL 8 | Fixed | RHSA-2020:1542 |
| Red Hat Ansible Engine 2.7 for RHEL 7 Server | Fixed | RHSA-2020:1544 |
| Red Hat Ansible Engine 2.8 for RHEL 7 Server | Fixed | RHSA-2020:1543 |
| Red Hat Ansible Engine 2.8 for RHEL 8 | Fixed | RHSA-2020:1543 |
| Red Hat Ansible Engine 2.9 for RHEL 7 Server | Fixed | RHSA-2020:1541 |
| Red Hat Ansible Engine 2.9 for RHEL 8 | Fixed | RHSA-2020:1541 |
| 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-2020-1740
- 2026-10-03 Alias added: GHSA-vcg8-98q8-g7mj
References
Advisory 10
- https://bugzilla.redhat.com/show_bug.cgi?id=CVE-2020-1740
- https://github.com/ansible/ansible/issues/67798
- FEDORA-2020-1b6ce91e37
- FEDORA-2020-3990f03ba3
- FEDORA-2020-f80154b5b4
- [debian-lts-announce] 20200505 [SECURITY] [DLA 2202-1] ansible security update
- GLSA-202006-11
- DSA-4950
- https://nvd.nist.gov/vuln/detail/CVE-2020-1740
- https://github.com/advisories/GHSA-vcg8-98q8-g7mj
Other 9
- https://github.com/ansible/ansible/commit/28f9fbdb5e281976e33f443193047068afb97a9b
- https://github.com/ansible/ansible/commit/2a563514f070a0a8ba64aebf6bce21194be96c73
- https://github.com/ansible/ansible/commit/685a4b6d3ff72186d2b4ffce73172a5446a71ccc
- https://github.com/ansible/ansible/commit/ef32a5bf96a89107986375516285253c1380d7ef
- https://github.com/ansible/ansible
- https://github.com/pypa/advisory-database/tree/main/vulns/ansible/PYSEC-2020-12.yaml
- https://lists.fedoraproject.org/archives/list/[email protected]/message/DKPA4KC3OJSUFASUYMG66HKJE7ADNGFW
- https://lists.fedoraproject.org/archives/list/[email protected]/message/MRRYUU5ZBLPBXCYG6CFP35D64NP2UB2S
- https://lists.fedoraproject.org/archives/list/[email protected]/message/WQVOQD4VAIXXTVQAJKTN7NUGTJFE2PCB
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-2020-1740 · CVE Program
- CVE-2020-1740 · NVD
- FIRST EPSS
- GHSA-vcg8-98q8-g7mj · GitHub Advisory Database · CC BY 4.0
- CVE-2020-1740 · Red Hat security data · CC BY 4.0
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