How severe is CVE-2020-15683?

CVE-2020-15683 has a CVSS 3.x base score of 9.8, rated critical severity. It is exploitable over network with low attack complexity, requires no privileges and no user interaction. Impact on confidentiality is high, integrity high, and availability high.

Is CVE-2020-15683 being actively exploited?

It is not currently listed in CISA's KEV catalog. Its EPSS exploit-prediction score is 3% (84th percentile), an estimate of the probability of exploitation in the next 30 days.

What products are affected by CVE-2020-15683?

CVE-2020-15683 primarily affects Mozilla Firefox. In total, 7 product configurations (CPEs) are listed as vulnerable; see the affected-products list for the exact versions.

How do I fix CVE-2020-15683?

Review the linked vendor and NVD advisories for patched versions and mitigations, then upgrade or apply the recommended workaround. Given its critical severity, prioritise patching exposed systems.

When was CVE-2020-15683 published?

CVE-2020-15683 was published on 2020-10-22 and last updated on 2026-06-17.

CVE-2020-15683

CVE-2020-15683 is a critical-severity vulnerability in Mozilla Firefox with a CVSS 3.x base score of 9.8. It is not currently listed as actively exploited by CISA, and its EPSS exploit-prediction score is low. The underlying weakness is classified as CWE-416.

Key facts

Severity: Critical (CVSS 3.x base score 9.8)
CVSS v2: 7.5
EPSS exploit prediction: 3% (84th percentile)
Actively exploited: Not listed in CISA KEV
Weakness: CWE-416
Affected product: Mozilla Firefox
Published: 2020-10-22
Last modified: 2026-06-17

Description

Mozilla developers and community members reported memory safety bugs present in Firefox 81 and Firefox ESR 78.3. Some of these bugs showed evidence of memory corruption and we presume that with enough effort some of these could have been exploited to run arbitrary code. This vulnerability affects Firefox ESR < 78.4, Firefox < 82, and Thunderbird < 78.4.

Frequently asked questions

What is CVE-2020-15683?: Mozilla developers and community members reported memory safety bugs present in Firefox 81 and Firefox ESR 78.3. Some of these bugs showed evidence of memory corruption and we presume that with enough effort some of these could have been exploited to run arbitrary code. This vulnerability affects Firefox ESR < 78.4, Firefox < 82, and Thunderbird < 78.4.
How severe is CVE-2020-15683?: CVE-2020-15683 has a CVSS 3.x base score of 9.8, rated critical severity. It is exploitable over network with low attack complexity, requires no privileges and no user interaction. Impact on confidentiality is high, integrity high, and availability high.
Is CVE-2020-15683 being actively exploited?: It is not currently listed in CISA's KEV catalog. Its EPSS exploit-prediction score is 3% (84th percentile), an estimate of the probability of exploitation in the next 30 days.
What products are affected by CVE-2020-15683?: CVE-2020-15683 primarily affects Mozilla Firefox. In total, 7 product configurations (CPEs) are listed as vulnerable; see the affected-products list for the exact versions.
How do I fix CVE-2020-15683?: Review the linked vendor and NVD advisories for patched versions and mitigations, then upgrade or apply the recommended workaround. Given its critical severity, prioritise patching exposed systems.
When was CVE-2020-15683 published?: CVE-2020-15683 was published on 2020-10-22 and last updated on 2026-06-17.

References

Affected products (7)

cpe:2.3:a:mozilla:firefox:*:*:*:*:*:*:*:*
cpe:2.3:a:mozilla:firefox_esr:*:*:*:*:*:*:*:*
cpe:2.3:a:mozilla:thunderbird:*:*:*:*:*:*:*:*
cpe:2.3:o:debian:debian_linux:9.0:*:*:*:*:*:*:*
cpe:2.3:o:debian:debian_linux:10.0:*:*:*:*:*:*:*
cpe:2.3:o:opensuse:leap:15.1:*:*:*:*:*:*:*
cpe:2.3:o:opensuse:leap:15.2:*:*:*:*:*:*:*

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