What is CVE-2020-15163?

CVE-2020-15163 is a high-severity vulnerability in Linuxfoundation The Update Framework, classified under Incorrect Authorization. CVSS score: 8.7/10. Published 2020-09-09.

How severe is CVE-2020-15163?

High severity. CVSS v3 base score is 8.7 out of 10.

Is CVE-2020-15163 known to be exploited?

1 public proof-of-concept repositories are indexed. Not currently listed in the CISA KEV catalog.

Auth bypass in Linuxfoundation The Update Framework

CVE-2020-15163

Python TUF (The Update Framework) reference implementation before version 0.12 it will incorrectly trust a previously downloaded root metadata file which failed verification at download time. This allows an attacker who is able to serve multiple new versions of root metadata (i.e. by a person-in-the-middle attack) culminating in a version which has not been correctly signed to control the trust chain for future updates. This is fixed in version 0.12 and newer.

Vulnerability class: Broken Access Control

Published 2020-09-09 · last modified 2026-06-17.

CVSS v3 metric

CVSS v3 base score 8.7 (High). Vector: CVSS:3.1/AV:N/AC:L/PR:L/UI:R/S:C/C:H/I:H/A:N.

EPSS exploit prediction

EPSS: 0.007 (50.0th percentile), scored 2026-09-29.

Very low probability of exploitation in the next 30 days; routine patching cadence is appropriate. 50th percentile — 50.0% of CVEs in the catalogue have a lower EPSS than this one. How to read EPSS.

EPSS over last 30 days · oldest: 0.007 · newest: 0.007 · change: 0.000

Affected products

Linuxfoundation The Update Framework
Theupdateframework Tuf — versions < 0.12

Weakness classification (CWE)

Public proof-of-concept exploits

404notf0und/CVE-Flow

References

github.com/theupdateframework/tuf/security/advisories/GHSA-f8mr-jv2c-v8mg (Third Party Advisory)
github.com/theupdateframework/tuf/pull/885 (Patch, Third Party Advisory)
github.com/theupdateframework/tuf/releases/tag/v0.12.0 (Third Party Advisory)
pypi.org/project/tuf (Product, Vendor Advisory)
github.com/theupdateframework/tuf/commit/3d342e648fbacdf43a13d7ba8886aaaf07334a… (Broken Link)

Frequently asked questions

What is CVE-2020-15163?: CVE-2020-15163 is a high-severity vulnerability in Linuxfoundation The Update Framework, classified under Incorrect Authorization. CVSS score: 8.7/10. Published 2020-09-09.
How severe is CVE-2020-15163?: High severity. CVSS v3 base score is 8.7 out of 10.
Is CVE-2020-15163 known to be exploited?: 1 public proof-of-concept repositories are indexed. Not currently listed in the CISA KEV catalog.