How severe is CVE-2020-26298?

CVE-2020-26298 has a CVSS 3.x base score of 6.8, rated medium severity. It is exploitable over network with low attack complexity, requires low privileges and user interaction. Impact on confidentiality is none, integrity high, and availability none.

Is CVE-2020-26298 being actively exploited?

It is not currently listed in CISA's KEV catalog. Its EPSS exploit-prediction score is 2% (72nd percentile), an estimate of the probability of exploitation in the next 30 days.

What products are affected by CVE-2020-26298?

CVE-2020-26298 primarily affects Redcarpet Project Redcarpet. In total, 3 product configurations (CPEs) are listed as vulnerable; see the affected-products list for the exact versions.

How do I fix CVE-2020-26298?

Review the linked vendor and NVD advisories for patched versions and mitigations, then upgrade or apply the recommended workaround.

When was CVE-2020-26298 published?

CVE-2020-26298 was published on 2021-01-11 and last updated on 2026-06-17.

CVE-2020-26298

CVE-2020-26298 is a medium-severity vulnerability in Redcarpet Project Redcarpet with a CVSS 3.x base score of 6.8. 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-74.

Key facts

Severity: Medium (CVSS 3.x base score 6.8)
CVSS v2: 3.5
EPSS exploit prediction: 2% (72nd percentile)
Actively exploited: Not listed in CISA KEV
Weakness: CWE-74
Affected product: Redcarpet Project Redcarpet
Published: 2021-01-11
Last modified: 2026-06-17

Description

Redcarpet is a Ruby library for Markdown processing. In Redcarpet before version 3.5.1, there is an injection vulnerability which can enable a cross-site scripting attack. In affected versions no HTML escaping was being performed when processing quotes. This applies even when the `:escape_html` option was being used. This is fixed in version 3.5.1 by the referenced commit.

Frequently asked questions

What is CVE-2020-26298?: Redcarpet is a Ruby library for Markdown processing. In Redcarpet before version 3.5.1, there is an injection vulnerability which can enable a cross-site scripting attack. In affected versions no HTML escaping was being performed when processing quotes. This applies even when the `:escape_html` option was being used. This is fixed in version 3.5.1 by the referenced commit.
How severe is CVE-2020-26298?: CVE-2020-26298 has a CVSS 3.x base score of 6.8, rated medium severity. It is exploitable over network with low attack complexity, requires low privileges and user interaction. Impact on confidentiality is none, integrity high, and availability none.
Is CVE-2020-26298 being actively exploited?: It is not currently listed in CISA's KEV catalog. Its EPSS exploit-prediction score is 2% (72nd percentile), an estimate of the probability of exploitation in the next 30 days.
What products are affected by CVE-2020-26298?: CVE-2020-26298 primarily affects Redcarpet Project Redcarpet. In total, 3 product configurations (CPEs) are listed as vulnerable; see the affected-products list for the exact versions.
How do I fix CVE-2020-26298?: Review the linked vendor and NVD advisories for patched versions and mitigations, then upgrade or apply the recommended workaround.
When was CVE-2020-26298 published?: CVE-2020-26298 was published on 2021-01-11 and last updated on 2026-06-17.

References

Affected products (3)

cpe:2.3:a:redcarpet_project:redcarpet:*:*:*:*:*:ruby:*:*
cpe:2.3:o:debian:debian_linux:9.0:*:*:*:*:*:*:*
cpe:2.3:o:debian:debian_linux:10.0:*:*:*:*:*:*:*

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