CVE-2020-12784
Official description Straight from the sourceThe vendor's or NVD's own wording, published unedited. Authoritative, but often terse — it says what broke, rarely what to do.
NVD · uneditedcPanel before 86.0.14 allows remote attackers to trigger a bandwidth suspension via mail log strings (SEC-505).
Technical summary Written by usOur analysis, written from the advisory, the CVSS vector and the affected-version data. It adds context the advisory leaves out, and never invents facts that are not in the source.
dbcve analysis · moderate confidencecPanel before version 86.0.14 contains a vulnerability in its mail logging subsystem where remote attackers can inject specially crafted strings into mail logs that trigger unintended bandwidth suspension actions. This appears to be an input validation or authorization flaw where the system misinterprets malicious log entries as legitimate suspension triggers.
Verify against the referenced sources before acting — the references below are authoritative for this CVE, this summary is not.
Affected products & versions What the vendor confirmedThe version ranges the vendor confirmed as vulnerable. If your version sits inside a range here, treat yourself as exposed until you have upgraded.
NVD · CPE data>= 11.78.0.1, < 11.78.0.47>= 11.84.0.0, < 11.84.0.22>= 11.86.0.1, < 11.86.0.14CVSS breakdown How the score is builtThe industry scoring standard. It rates how the flaw is reached, what it takes to exploit, and what an attacker gains — the score is derived from those, not the other way round.
From the vector- Attack vector
- Network
- Complexity
- Low
- Privileges
- None
- User interaction
- None
- Scope
- Unchanged
- Confidentiality
- None
- Integrity
- None
- Availability
- Low
CVSS:3.1/AV:N/AC:L/PR:N/UI:N/S:U/C:N/I:N/A:L
Am I affected? How to checkSteps we derive from the advisory and the affected-version data, so you can decide whether this CVE reaches your setup. They are a guide, not a scan — your own configuration is the authority.
dbcve checksWork through these to decide whether this CVE applies to you.
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Check installed cPanel versionRun the command: cat /usr/local/cpanel/version or access WHM and check the cPanel version in the sidebarAffected if The version falls within these ranges: 11.78.0.1 to 11.78.0.46, 11.84.0.0 to 11.84.0.21, or 11.86.0.1 to 11.86.0.13
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Verify mail logging subsystem is activeCheck if mail logging is enabled in cPanel configuration files such as /var/cpanel/cpanel.config or via WHM under Mail > Mailzone ProtectionAffected if Mail logging is enabled and the cPanel version is vulnerable
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Inspect mail logs for anomalous suspension triggersReview /var/log/exim_mainlog and /var/log/exim_rejectlog for unusual entries containing keywords like 'suspend', 'bandwidth', or unexpected IP addresses that could indicate injection attemptsAffected if Log entries contain suspicious strings that do not correspond to legitimate mail activity or legitimate suspension actions
A user is affected if their cPanel version is below 86.0.14 and falls within one of the three vulnerable version ranges, with mail logging enabled.
Generated from the published advisory. Verify against your own configuration.
Remediation Closing itWhat it takes to close this. Where a vendor fix exists we point at it; where none exists we say so plainly, and can build one. Effort estimates are scoped from the advisory, not from your codebase.
From vendor data11.78.0.4711.84.0.2211.86.0.14
Update cPanel to version 86.0.14 or later to patch this vulnerability. Until the update can be applied, monitor mail logs for anomalous patterns that might indicate exploitation attempts.
- Consultation1.0 h
- Implementation2.0 h
- Testing2.0 h
- Review / QA1.0 h
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Free · runs locallyCheck whether your project pulls in CVE-2020-12784 — or any other known-vulnerable package — straight from your lock files. Free and open source; it runs locally and uploads nothing.
References Go to the primary sourcePrimary sources — vendor advisories, patches and trackers. Where our summary and a reference disagree, the reference wins.
Primary sourcesPractitioner notes
ContributedPeer-ranked notes from engineers who’ve handled CVE-2020-12784 in production — separate from our analysis above.
The advisory tells you what broke. It rarely tells you what actually worked. If you’ve dealt with this one, that detail is what the next engineer is searching for.
- The version that genuinely resolved it — not the one the vendor claimed
- A config change or rule that shut the vector down
- A gotcha in the upgrade path that cost you an afternoon
No notes yet
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- Verified mitigations, workarounds, and config changes
- Version or environment caveats, and links to real fixes
- No weaponised exploit code, or anything meant to cause harm
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