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ColdfusionApplication · Adobe

CVE-2020-3768

HIGH · 7.8 CVSS v3.1 Published 2020-06-26
Mitigation only
No fix yet — a mitigation exists. There is no fixed release. A documented workaround reduces exposure in the meantime.
See remediation →
81/100
Remediation priority · High
No privileges

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
ColdFusion versions ColdFusion 2016, and ColdFusion 2018 have a dll search-order hijacking vulnerability. Successful exploitation could lead to privilege escalation.

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 confidence

ColdFusion 2016 and 2018 contain a DLL search-order hijacking vulnerability where the application loads DLLs from locations that can be controlled by an attacker, potentially allowing privilege escalation to SYSTEM or administrator level.

MitigationApply the official Adobe ColdFusion updates/patches for this vulnerability. As a compensating control, ensure strict permissions on ColdFusion directories to prevent unauthorized DLL placement, and verify all DLL paths use absolute locations rather than relative searches.

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
ColdfusionApplication
Affected:= 2016= 2018

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
Local
Complexity
Low
Privileges
None
User interaction
Required
Scope
Unchanged
Confidentiality
High
Integrity
High
Availability
High

CVSS:3.1/AV:L/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 checks

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

  1. Identify ColdFusion version
    Check the version of Adobe ColdFusion installed on the system. Common locations include the ColdFusion Administrator interface, or check the 'version.properties' or 'product.xml' file in the ColdFusion installation directory.
    Affected if The installed version is 2016 or 2018.
  2. Locate ColdFusion installation directory
    Find the root directory where ColdFusion is installed. This is typically in C:\ColdFusion2016 or C:\ColdFusion2018 on Windows, or /opt/coldfusion2016 or /opt/coldfusion2018 on Linux/Unix.
    Affected if ColdFusion 2016 or 2018 is installed and the installation directory is accessible.
  3. Check bin directories for DLL files
    Inspect the bin directory within the ColdFusion installation folder for any DLL files. List all DLLs present and note their locations relative to the ColdFusion root.
    Affected if DLL files exist in the bin directory or subdirectories that could be subject to search-order hijacking.
  4. Review jvm.config for DLL path settings
    Open the jvm.config file located in the ColdFusion installation\bin directory. Search for any java.library.path settings or path variables that specify DLL loading locations.
    Affected if The configuration uses relative paths or includes the current working directory in DLL search paths.
  5. Examine ColdFusion service execution context
    Check how the ColdFusion service runs (SYSTEM, administrator, or specific user account). Use the Services management console on Windows or check /etc/init.d scripts on Linux.
    Affected if ColdFusion runs with elevated privileges (SYSTEM or administrator) while using vulnerable DLL loading behavior.
  6. Verify DLL search order behavior
    Monitor or review the application's DLL loading behavior. Check if ColdFusion loads DLLs from the application directory, current working directory, or other user-controlled locations before checking system paths.
    Affected if ColdFusion loads DLLs from locations controllable by lower-privilege users, allowing search-order hijacking.

A system is affected if it runs ColdFusion 2016 or 2018 and uses DLL loading from relative or user-controllable paths that could be exploited for privilege escalation.

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.

From vendor data
Mitigation available No clean upgrade yet — mitigate in the meantime
Mitigation

Apply the official Adobe ColdFusion updates/patches for this vulnerability. As a compensating control, ensure strict permissions on ColdFusion directories to prevent unauthorized DLL placement, and verify all DLL paths use absolute locations rather than relative searches.

Fix this in Coldfusion Scoped from the published advisory
  • Consultation4.0 h
  • Implementation8.0 h
  • Testing6.0 h
  • Review / QA4.0 h
22.0 hours of engineering $3,860
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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-2020-3768 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
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