CVE-2020-1902
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 user running a quick search on a highly forwarded message on WhatsApp for Android from v2.20.108 to v2.20.140 or WhatsApp Business for Android from v2.20.35 to v2.20.49 could have been sent to the Google service over plain HTTP.
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 confidenceWhen users performed a 'quick search' on highly forwarded messages in WhatsApp for Android (v2.20.108-140) or WhatsApp Business for Android (v2.20.35-49), search queries were transmitted to Google's service over unencrypted HTTP instead of HTTPS, allowing potential network interception of sensitive search data.
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>= 2.20.108, <= 2.20.140>= 2.20.35, <= 2.20.49CVSS 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
- High
- Integrity
- None
- Availability
- None
CVSS:3.1/AV:N/AC:L/PR:N/UI:N/S:U/C:H/I:N/A:N
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 WhatsApp for Android versionOpen WhatsApp, tap the three-dot menu > Settings > Help > About WhatsApp. Note the version number shown under 'Version'. Alternatively, check in Google Play Store app listing under 'App information'.Affected if Version is 2.20.108, 2.20.109, 2.20.110, 2.20.111, 2.20.112, 2.20.113, 2.20.114, 2.20.115, 2.20.116, 2.20.117, 2.20.118, 2.20.119, 2.20.120, 2.20.121, 2.20.122, 2.20.123, 2.20.124, 2.20.125, 2.20.126, 2.20.127, 2.20.128, 2.20.129, 2.20.130, 2.20.131, 2.20.132, 2.20.133, 2.20.134, 2.20.135, 2.20.136,
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Check WhatsApp Business for Android versionOpen WhatsApp Business, tap the three-dot menu > Settings > Help > About WhatsApp Business. Note the version number shown under 'Version'. Alternatively, check in Google Play Store app listing under 'App information'.Affected if Version is 2.20.35, 2.20.36, 2.20.37, 2.20.38, 2.20.39, 2.20.40, 2.20.41, 2.20.42, 2.20.43, 2.20.44, 2.20.45, 2.20.46, 2.20.47, 2.20.48, or 2.20.49
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Confirm affected feature usageThe vulnerability specifically affects 'quick search' performed on messages that have been highly forwarded. Review whether you or users in your organization frequently use the search feature on forwarded messages in WhatsApp or WhatsApp Business for Android.Affected if You use the quick search feature on highly forwarded messages in either app while running an affected version listed in step 1 or step 2
You are affected if WhatsApp for Android version is between 2.20.108-140 or WhatsApp Business for Android version is between 2.20.35-49, AND you use quick search on highly forwarded 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 dataUpdate WhatsApp and WhatsApp Business for Android to versions newer than v2.20.140 and v2.20.49 respectively to receive the patch that enforces HTTPS communication.
- Consultation2.0 h
- Implementation4.0 h
- Testing3.0 h
- Review / QA2.0 h
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Scan for this in your stack
Free · runs locallyCheck whether your project pulls in CVE-2020-1902 — 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-2020-1902 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
- No spam, self-promotion, credentials, or personal data