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YedApplication · Yworks

CVE-2020-25216

CRITICAL · 9.8 CVSS v3.1 Published 2020-09-17
Fix available
A fix is available. Upgrade to 3.20.1 or later.
See remediation →
100/100
Remediation priority · Urgent
Remotely reachable No privileges Zero-click

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 · unedited
yWorks yEd Desktop before 3.20.1 allows code execution via an XSL Transformation when using an XML file in conjunction with a custom stylesheet.

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 confidence

yEd Desktop versions before 3.20.1 contain a code execution vulnerability in its XSL Transformation processing. When a user opens a specially crafted XML file combined with a malicious custom XSLT stylesheet, the application can be tricked into executing arbitrary code on the target system.

MitigationUpgrade yEd Desktop to version 3.20.1 or later. Until then, avoid opening XML files from untrusted sources and refrain from using custom XSLT stylesheets with untrusted XML content.

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
YedApplication
Affected:< 3.20.1

CVSS 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
High
Availability
High

CVSS:3.1/AV:N/AC:L/PR:N/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 checks

Work through these to decide whether this CVE applies to you.

  1. Locate yEd Desktop installation
    Search for yEd installation directories: on Windows check 'C:\Program Files\yWorks\yEd' or '%LOCALAPPDATA%\yWorks\yEd', on macOS check '/Applications/yEd.app', on Linux check '~/.yworks/yEd' or '/opt/yed'. Also check the Windows registry under 'HKEY_LOCAL_MACHINE\SOFTWARE\yWorks\yEd' or 'HKEY_CURRENT_USER\SOFTWARE\yWorks\yEd'.
    Affected if yEd Desktop is found installed on the system.
  2. Determine installed version
    Open the yEd application and navigate to Help > About, or check for a version file in the installation directory named 'version.properties' or 'yed.jar' manifest. On Windows, the executable properties may also display version information.
    Affected if The version number displayed is lower than 3.20.1.
  3. Verify vulnerable component presence
    Confirm the XSL Transformation feature exists by attempting to import or open an XML file in yEd: File > Open, or check if the application supports XML/XSLT import via File > Import. The vulnerability lies in processing XML files with custom XSLT stylesheets.
    Affected if yEd can open or import XML files and supports XSLT stylesheet processing.
  4. Assess exposure to untrusted files
    Review whether users in your environment have opened or are likely to open XML files from external or untrusted sources, or use custom XSLT stylesheets with those files.
    Affected if Users process XML files from untrusted sources or apply custom XSLT stylesheets to untrusted content.

The environment is affected if yEd Desktop version is below 3.20.1 and users can process XML files with custom XSLT stylesheets, which is a built-in capability of the application.

Generated from the published advisory. Verify against your own configuration.

Check your environment

Paste your version and any relevant configuration and it will be compared against the affected criteria above. Do not include secrets or credentials.

AI-assisted, checked against the advisory. Informational, not a guarantee.

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.

dbcve · scoped
Upgrade available Upgrade to 3.20.1 or later
Fixed in 3.20.1
Interim mitigation

Upgrade yEd Desktop to version 3.20.1 or later. Until then, avoid opening XML files from untrusted sources and refrain from using custom XSLT stylesheets with untrusted XML content.

Recommended fix Moderate confidence

3.20.1

  1. Navigate to the official yWorks website (www.yworks.com) or your organization's software distribution point
  2. Locate the yEd Desktop download section
  3. Download yEd Desktop version 3.20.1 or later
  4. Verify the downloaded installer matches the expected hash if provided by yWorks
  5. Close any running instances of yEd Desktop
  6. Run the installer and follow the prompts to upgrade
  7. After installation, verify the version by going to Help > About yEd Desktop

Generated from the published advisory — verify against the referenced sources before acting.

Fix this in Yed Scoped from the published advisory
  • Consultation2.0 h
  • Implementation2.0 h
  • Testing2.0 h
  • Review / QA1.0 h
7.0 hours of engineering $1,240
Get the upgrade done

An estimate, not a bill — we confirm scope with you before any work starts. Need it this week? Rush from $1,984.

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References Go to the primary sourcePrimary sources — vendor advisories, patches and trackers. Where our summary and a reference disagree, the reference wins.

Primary sources

Practitioner notes

Contributed

Peer-ranked notes from engineers who’ve handled CVE-2020-25216 in production — separate from our analysis above.

No notes yet

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What this is

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.

What belongs here
  • 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