GlobalprotectApplication · Paloaltonetworks
CVE-2020-1989
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 · uneditedAn incorrect privilege assignment vulnerability when writing application-specific files in the Palo Alto Networks Global Protect Agent for Linux on ARM platform allows a local authenticated user to gain root privileges on the system. This issue affects Palo Alto Networks Global Protect Agent for Linux 5.0 versions before 5.0.8; 5.1 versions before 5.1.1.
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 confidenceThis is a local privilege escalation vulnerability in Palo Alto Networks Global Protect Agent for Linux on ARM platforms. The issue involves incorrect privilege assignment when writing application-specific files, allowing a local authenticated user to manipulate file permissions or ownership to gain root privileges.
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
GlobalprotectApplication
>= 5.0, < 5.0.8>= 5.1, < 5.1.1CVSS 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
- Local
- Complexity
- Low
- Privileges
- Low
- User interaction
- None
- Scope
- Unchanged
- Confidentiality
- High
- Integrity
- High
- Availability
- High
CVSS:3.1/AV:L/AC:L/PR:L/UI:N/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.
-
Verify Global Protect Agent is installedUse your system's package manager or look for the GlobalProtect application binary (commonly in /usr/local/bin, /opt, or similar locations)Affected if Global Protect Agent is not found on the system, the user is not affected by this specific vulnerability
-
Determine installed version of Global Protect AgentRun the version command for Global Protect Agent (typically 'GlobalProtect --version' or check via package manager)Affected if The installed version falls within >= 5.0 and < 5.0.8, OR >= 5.1 and < 5.1.1
-
Identify system architectureRun 'uname -m' or 'arch' command to check if the Linux system is running on ARM architectureAffected if The system is not running on ARM (the vulnerability specifically affects ARM platforms only)
-
Check application file permissionsExamine file permissions and ownership in Global Protect Agent directories where application-specific files are writtenAffected if Files are writable by the authenticated user with incorrect ownership or permission settings that could allow privilege escalation
The user is affected if Global Protect Agent is installed on a Linux ARM system with version 5.0.x below 5.0.8 or version 5.1.x below 5.1.1 and the application has file permission vulnerabilities present.
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 data5.0.85.1.1
Upgrade Global Protect Agent for Linux to version 5.0.8 or later, or 5.1.1 or later, depending on the major version branch in use.
Fix this in Globalprotect
Scoped from the published advisory
- Consultation2.0 h
- Implementation2.0 h
- Testing3.0 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 $2,224.
Scan for this in your stack
Free · runs locallyCheck whether your project pulls in CVE-2020-1989 — 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-2020-1989 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