Single Sign On For TanzuApplication · VMware
CVE-2020-5425
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 · uneditedSingle Sign-On for Vmware Tanzu all versions prior to 1.11.3 ,1.12.x versions prior to 1.12.4 and 1.13.x prior to 1.13.1 are vulnerable to user impersonation attack.If two users are logged in to the SSO operator dashboard at the same time, with the same username, from two different identity providers, one can acquire the token of the other and thus operate with their permissions. Note: Foundation may be vulnerable only if: 1) The system zone is set up to use a SAML identity provider 2) There are internal users that have the same username as users in the external SAML provider 3) Those duplicate-named users have the scope to access the SSO operator dashboard 4) The vulnerability doesn't appear with LDAP because of chained authentication.
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 confidenceVMware Tanzu SSO has a user impersonation vulnerability where two users logged in simultaneously with the same username from different identity providers (SAML) can acquire each other's session tokens, allowing unauthorized access with the other user's permissions.
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
Single Sign On For TanzuApplication
< 1.11.3>= 1.12.0, < 1.12.4>= 1.13.0, < 1.13.1CVSS 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
- Network
- Complexity
- High
- Privileges
- Low
- User interaction
- Required
- Scope
- Changed
- Confidentiality
- Low
- Integrity
- High
- Availability
- High
CVSS:3.1/AV:N/AC:H/PR:L/UI:R/S:C/C:L/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.
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Identify installed VMware SSO versionLocate the VMware Single Sign On For Tanzu installation and retrieve its version number from the product interface, installation directory, or version command provided by the product toolingAffected if The installed version is less than 1.11.3, or between 1.12.0 and 1.12.4 exclusive, or between 1.13.0 and 1.13.1 exclusive
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Confirm SAML identity provider is configuredCheck the SSO configuration to determine if any external SAML identity providers have been integrated for user authenticationAffected if SAML authentication is enabled and external identity providers are connected to the SSO instance
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Identify internal user accountsList all user accounts defined in the internal identity store or local user database of the SSO systemAffected if There are users defined in the internal/local user store
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Identify SAML provider user accountsList all users provisioned from external SAML identity providers who have access to the SSO operator dashboardAffected if Users from SAML providers are granted access to the SSO operator dashboard
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Check for username overlapCompare the list of internal usernames against usernames from SAML providers to identify any exact username matchesAffected if The same username exists in both the internal user store and a SAML provider user account that has operator dashboard access
You are affected if your SSO version falls within the vulnerable ranges AND you have duplicate usernames between internal users and SAML provider users with operator access.
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 data1.11.31.12.41.13.1
Upgrade to VMware Tanzu SSO versions 1.11.3, 1.12.4, or 1.13.1 or later. Additionally, ensure no duplicate usernames exist between internal users and external SAML provider users who have access to the SSO operator dashboard.
Fix this in Single Sign On For Tanzu
Scoped from the published advisory
- Consultation4.0 h
- Implementation8.0 h
- Testing6.0 h
- Review / QA2.0 h
An estimate, not a bill — we confirm scope with you before any work starts. Need it this week? Rush from $5,600.
Scan for this in your stack
Free · runs locallyCheck whether your project pulls in CVE-2020-5425 — 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-2020-5425 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
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