HOME VULNERABILITIESCVE-2020-15707

MEDIUM

CVE-2020-15707

CWE-362Published: July 29, 2020· Updated: Jun 17, 2026

6.4

CVSS v3.1

Official Description

Integer overflows were discovered in the functions grub_cmd_initrd and grub_initrd_init in the efilinux component of GRUB2, as shipped in Debian, Red Hat, and Ubuntu (the functionality is not included in GRUB2 upstream), leading to a heap-based buffer overflow. These could be triggered by an extremely large number of arguments to the initrd command on 32-bit architectures, or a crafted filesystem with very large files on any architecture. An attacker could use this to execute arbitrary code and bypass UEFI Secure Boot restrictions. This issue affects GRUB2 version 2.04 and prior versions.

Technical Analysis

CVE-2020-15707 requires local access, meaning attackers must already have a foothold on the target system.

Exploitation requires high privileges, which limits the exposure to scenarios where an attacker has already gained initial access.

A successful exploit results in complete confidentiality breach (data exposure), full integrity compromise (data manipulation), availability disruption (denial of service), with a CVSS base score of 6.4.

CVSS v3.1 Vector Breakdown

Exploitability

Attack VectorLocal

Attack ComplexityHigh

Privileges Req.High

User InteractionNone

ScopeUnchanged

Impact

ConfidentialityHigh

IntegrityHigh

AvailabilityHigh

CVSS:3.1/AV:L/AC:H/PR:H/UI:N/S:U/C:H/I:H/A:H

Affected Vendors & Products

Canonical1 product(s)

ubuntu linux

Debian1 product(s)

debian linux

gnu1 product(s)

grub2

Microsoft6 product(s)

windows 10windows 8.1windows rt 8.1windows server 2012windows server 2016windows server 2019

netapp1 product(s)

active iq unified manager

openSUSE1 product(s)

leap

Red Hat3 product(s)

enterprise linux atomic hostopenshift container platformenterprise linux

SUSE1 product(s)

suse linux enterprise server

Source: NVD CPE · 33 total CPE entries

Exploit & PoC Resources

NO KNOWN EXPLOITNo public exploit confirmed at this time

Offensive Security exploit database

GitHub PoC Search

Community PoC repositories

Rapid7 / Metasploit

Metasploit module search

Security advisories & exploits

Official NIST entry

CVE Program entry

External links open in a new tab. Always verify in a controlled environment before use.

Official Patches & Advisories

PATCHhttps://portal.msrc.microsoft.com/en-US/security-guidance/advisory/ADV200011

PATCHhttps://portal.msrc.microsoft.com/en-US/security-guidance/advisory/ADV200011

ADVISORYhttp://lists.opensuse.org/opensuse-security-announce/2020-08/msg00016.html

ADVISORYhttp://lists.opensuse.org/opensuse-security-announce/2020-08/msg00017.html

ADVISORYhttp://ubuntu.com/security/notices/USN-4432-1

ADVISORYhttp://www.openwall.com/lists/oss-security/2020/07/29/3

ADVISORYhttps://access.redhat.com/security/vulnerabilities/grub2bootloader

ADVISORYhttps://lists.gnu.org/archive/html/grub-devel/2020-07/msg00034.html

ADVISORYhttps://security.gentoo.org/glsa/202104-05

ADVISORYhttps://security.netapp.com/advisory/ntap-20200731-0008/

ADVISORYhttps://usn.ubuntu.com/4432-1/

ADVISORYhttps://wiki.ubuntu.com/SecurityTeam/KnowledgeBase/GRUB2SecureBootBypass

ADVISORYhttps://www.debian.org/security/2020-GRUB-UEFI-SecureBoot

ADVISORYhttps://www.debian.org/security/2020/dsa-4735

ADVISORYhttps://www.eclypsium.com/2020/07/29/theres-a-hole-in-the-boot/

ADVISORYhttps://www.openwall.com/lists/oss-security/2020/07/29/3

ADVISORYhttps://www.suse.com/c/suse-addresses-grub2-secure-boot-issue/

ADVISORYhttps://www.suse.com/support/kb/doc/?id=000019673

ADVISORYhttp://lists.opensuse.org/opensuse-security-announce/2020-08/msg00016.html

ADVISORYhttp://lists.opensuse.org/opensuse-security-announce/2020-08/msg00017.html

ADVISORYhttp://ubuntu.com/security/notices/USN-4432-1

ADVISORYhttp://www.openwall.com/lists/oss-security/2020/07/29/3

ADVISORYhttps://access.redhat.com/security/vulnerabilities/grub2bootloader

ADVISORYhttps://lists.gnu.org/archive/html/grub-devel/2020-07/msg00034.html

ADVISORYhttps://security.gentoo.org/glsa/202104-05

ADVISORYhttps://security.netapp.com/advisory/ntap-20200731-0008/

ADVISORYhttps://usn.ubuntu.com/4432-1/

ADVISORYhttps://wiki.ubuntu.com/SecurityTeam/KnowledgeBase/GRUB2SecureBootBypass

ADVISORYhttps://www.debian.org/security/2020-GRUB-UEFI-SecureBoot

ADVISORYhttps://www.debian.org/security/2020/dsa-4735

ADVISORYhttps://www.eclypsium.com/2020/07/29/theres-a-hole-in-the-boot/

ADVISORYhttps://www.openwall.com/lists/oss-security/2020/07/29/3

ADVISORYhttps://www.suse.com/c/suse-addresses-grub2-secure-boot-issue/

ADVISORYhttps://www.suse.com/support/kb/doc/?id=000019673

All References (34)

→

http://lists.opensuse.org/opensuse-security-announce/2020-08/msg00016.htmlMailing List · Third Party Advisory

→

http://lists.opensuse.org/opensuse-security-announce/2020-08/msg00017.htmlMailing List · Third Party Advisory

→

http://ubuntu.com/security/notices/USN-4432-1Third Party Advisory

→

http://www.openwall.com/lists/oss-security/2020/07/29/3Mailing List · Third Party Advisory

→

https://access.redhat.com/security/vulnerabilities/grub2bootloaderThird Party Advisory

→

https://lists.gnu.org/archive/html/grub-devel/2020-07/msg00034.htmlIssue Tracking · Vendor Advisory

→

https://portal.msrc.microsoft.com/en-US/security-guidance/advisory/ADV200011Patch · Third Party Advisory · Vendor Advisory

→

https://security.gentoo.org/glsa/202104-05Third Party Advisory

→

https://security.netapp.com/advisory/ntap-20200731-0008/Third Party Advisory

→

https://usn.ubuntu.com/4432-1/Third Party Advisory

→

https://wiki.ubuntu.com/SecurityTeam/KnowledgeBase/GRUB2SecureBootBypassThird Party Advisory

→

https://www.debian.org/security/2020-GRUB-UEFI-SecureBootThird Party Advisory

→

https://www.debian.org/security/2020/dsa-4735Third Party Advisory

→

https://www.eclypsium.com/2020/07/29/theres-a-hole-in-the-boot/Exploit · Third Party Advisory

→

https://www.openwall.com/lists/oss-security/2020/07/29/3Mailing List · Third Party Advisory

Quick Facts

CVE IDCVE-2020-15707

CVSS Score6.4 / 10

SeverityMEDIUM

WeaknessCWE-362

CISA KEVNo

Affected8 vendor(s)

PublishedJul 29, 2020

Related CVEs (CWE-362)

Recommended Actions

→Apply vendor patches immediately
→Monitor CVE-2020-15707 in threat intel feeds
→Review IDS/IPS signatures for exploitation attempts

Data sourced from NVD (NIST), CISA KEV, and EPSS (FIRST). Analysis generated by CTIWatch. CVE data is provided under the NVD usage policy.

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