CVE-2020-1894
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 · uneditedA stack write overflow in WhatsApp for Android prior to v2.20.35, WhatsApp Business for Android prior to v2.20.20, WhatsApp for iPhone prior to v2.20.30, and WhatsApp Business for iPhone prior to v2.20.30 could have allowed arbitrary code execution when playing a specially crafted push to talk message.
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 · high confidenceA stack-based buffer overflow vulnerability exists in WhatsApp's audio processing for push-to-talk messages. When playing a specially crafted malicious audio file, the stack buffer can be overflowed, potentially allowing an attacker to execute arbitrary code on the victim's device.
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< 2.20.30< 2.20.35< 2.20.20< 2.20.30CVSS 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
- Required
- Scope
- Unchanged
- Confidentiality
- High
- Integrity
- High
- Availability
- High
CVSS:3.1/AV:N/AC:L/PR:N/UI:R/S:U/C:H/I:H/A:H
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.
-
Identify installed WhatsApp versionOpen WhatsApp, tap Settings, then Help, then About. Note the version number shown under 'Version'.Affected if The version displayed is less than 2.20.30 for Android or less than 2.20.35 for iOS
-
Identify installed WhatsApp Business versionIf WhatsApp Business is installed, open it, tap Settings, then Help, then About. Note the version number shown under 'Version'.Affected if The version displayed is less than 2.20.20 for Android or less than 2.20.30 for iOS
-
Compare versions against affected rangesConsult your organization's mobile device management (MDM) console or device inventory to confirm all managed devices are running WhatsApp versions below the affected thresholds.Affected if Any managed device has WhatsApp below v2.20.30/v2.20.35 or WhatsApp Business below v2.20.20/v2.20.30 installed
You are affected if any device in your environment has WhatsApp below v2.20.30/2.20.35 or WhatsApp Business below v2.20.20/2.20.30 installed, as the vulnerability is triggered by processing malicious audio in push-to-talk messages.
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 data2.20.202.20.302.20.35
Update WhatsApp and WhatsApp Business to the patched versions (v2.20.35+ for Android, v2.20.30+ for iPhone). Organizations should use mobile device management to enforce updates across managed devices.
- Consultation2.0 h
- Implementation4.0 h
- Testing2.0 h
- Review / QA1.0 h
An estimate, not a bill — we confirm scope with you before any work starts. Need it this week? Rush from $2,560.
Scan for this in your stack
Free · runs locallyCheck whether your project pulls in CVE-2020-1894 — 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-2020-1894 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
Be the first to add a field note for this CVE — a mitigation you’ve verified, a version caveat, or a link to a working fix. Sign in above to contribute.
A place for practitioners to share what actually worked: a mitigation you’ve tested, a configuration change, a version- or environment-specific caveat, or a link to a verified patch. The most useful notes rise to the top as peers upvote them, so the signal stays high.
- 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
- No spam, self-promotion, credentials, or personal data