How severe is CVE-2020-15708?

CVE-2020-15708 has a CVSS 3.x base score of 9.3, rated critical severity. It is exploitable over local access with low attack complexity, requires no privileges and no user interaction. Impact on confidentiality is high, integrity high, and availability high.

Is CVE-2020-15708 being actively exploited?

It is not currently listed in CISA's KEV catalog. Its EPSS exploit-prediction score is 0% (30th percentile), an estimate of the probability of exploitation in the next 30 days.

What products are affected by CVE-2020-15708?

CVE-2020-15708 affects Canonical Ubuntu Linux. See the affected-products list for the exact vulnerable versions.

How do I fix CVE-2020-15708?

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-2020-15708 published?

CVE-2020-15708 was published on 2020-11-06 and last updated on 2026-06-17.

CVE-2020-15708

CVE-2020-15708 is a critical-severity vulnerability in Canonical Ubuntu Linux with a CVSS 3.x base score of 9.3. 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-732.

Key facts

Severity: Critical (CVSS 3.x base score 9.3)
CVSS v2: 4.6
EPSS exploit prediction: 0% (30th percentile)
Actively exploited: Not listed in CISA KEV
Weakness: CWE-732
Affected product: Canonical Ubuntu Linux
Published: 2020-11-06
Last modified: 2026-06-17

Description

Ubuntu's packaging of libvirt in 20.04 LTS created a control socket with world read and write permissions. An attacker could use this to overwrite arbitrary files or execute arbitrary code.

Frequently asked questions

What is CVE-2020-15708?: Ubuntu's packaging of libvirt in 20.04 LTS created a control socket with world read and write permissions. An attacker could use this to overwrite arbitrary files or execute arbitrary code.
How severe is CVE-2020-15708?: CVE-2020-15708 has a CVSS 3.x base score of 9.3, rated critical severity. It is exploitable over local access with low attack complexity, requires no privileges and no user interaction. Impact on confidentiality is high, integrity high, and availability high.
Is CVE-2020-15708 being actively exploited?: It is not currently listed in CISA's KEV catalog. Its EPSS exploit-prediction score is 0% (30th percentile), an estimate of the probability of exploitation in the next 30 days.
What products are affected by CVE-2020-15708?: CVE-2020-15708 affects Canonical Ubuntu Linux. See the affected-products list for the exact vulnerable versions.
How do I fix CVE-2020-15708?: 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-2020-15708 published?: CVE-2020-15708 was published on 2020-11-06 and last updated on 2026-06-17.

References

https://usn.ubuntu.com/usn/usn-4452-1

Affected products (1)

cpe:2.3:o:canonical:ubuntu_linux:20.04:*:*:*:lts:*:*:*

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