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GatewayApplication · Citrix

CVE-2020-8300

MEDIUM · 6.5 CVSS v3.1 Published 2021-06-16
Fix available
A fix is available. Upgrade to 11.1-65.20 / 12.1-55.238 or later.
See remediation →
72/100
Remediation priority · Elevated
Remotely reachable 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
Citrix ADC and Citrix/NetScaler Gateway before 13.0-82.41, 12.1-62.23, 11.1-65.20 and Citrix ADC 12.1-FIPS before 12.1-55.238 suffer from improper access control allowing SAML authentication hijack through a phishing attack to steal a valid user session. Note that Citrix ADC or Citrix Gateway must be configured as a SAML SP or a SAML IdP for this to be possible.

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

Improper access control in Citrix ADC and Citrix/NetScaler Gateway allows SAML authentication hijacking through phishing attacks. An attacker can steal a valid user session when the device is configured as a SAML Service Provider (SP) or Identity Provider (IdP). The vulnerability affects versions before 13.0-82.41, 12.1-62.23, 11.1-65.20 and ADC 12.1-FIPS before 12.1-55.238.

MitigationApply the vendor-supplied patches to reach the fixed versions (13.0-82.41, 12.1-62.23, 11.1-65.20, or 12.1-55.238 for FIPS). If immediate patching is not possible, enforce additional user awareness training for phishing and monitor for anomalous SAML sessions.

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
GatewayApplication
Affected:>= 12.1, < 12.1-62.23>= 13.0, < 13.0-82.41
Netscaler GatewayApplication
Affected:>= 11.1, < 11.1-65.20
Application Delivery Controller FirmwareOperating system
Affected:>= 11.1, < 11.1-65.20>= 12.1, < 12.1-62.23>= 13.0, < 13.0-82.41>= 12.1, < 12.1-55.238

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
Required
Scope
Unchanged
Confidentiality
None
Integrity
High
Availability
None

CVSS:3.1/AV:N/AC:L/PR:N/UI:R/S:U/C:N/I:H/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 checks

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

  1. Identify the Citrix product and firmware version
    Log into the Citrix ADC or Gateway management interface and navigate to the System or Diagnostics section to view the firmware version. Alternatively, run 'show version' or 'nsversion' command from the CLI.
    Affected if The version falls within any of these vulnerable ranges: 13.0 before 82.41, 12.1 before 62.23, 11.1 before 65.20, or 12.1-FIPS before 55.238.
  2. Determine if the device is configured as a SAML Service Provider (SP)
    Check the VPN virtual server, session policy, or authentication profile configuration for SAML SP settings. Look for SAML-related authentication profiles or policies in the configuration.
    Affected if SAML SP configuration is present and the firmware version is vulnerable.
  3. Determine if the device is configured as a SAML Identity Provider (IdP)
    Check the authentication server or IdP settings for SAML IdP configuration. Look for SAML IdP profiles in the authentication or AAA settings.
    Affected if SAML IdP configuration is present and the firmware version is vulnerable.
  4. Verify the specific build number within the version branch
    Compare the full build number (for example, 12.1-55.238 or 12.1-62.23) against the fixed versions. The firmware version string contains the exact build number that determines if it includes the patch.
    Affected if The build number is lower than 82.41 for version 13.0, lower than 62.23 for version 12.1 (non-FIPS), lower than 65.20 for version 11.1, or lower than 55.238 for version 12.1-FIPS.

The environment is affected if the device runs a vulnerable Citrix ADC, Gateway, or NetScaler Gateway version and has SAML SP or IdP authentication configured.

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
Upgrade available Upgrade to 11.1-65.20 / 12.1-55.238 / 12.1-62.23 or later
Fixed in 11.1-65.2012.1-55.23812.1-62.23
Interim mitigation

Apply the vendor-supplied patches to reach the fixed versions (13.0-82.41, 12.1-62.23, 11.1-65.20, or 12.1-55.238 for FIPS). If immediate patching is not possible, enforce additional user awareness training for phishing and monitor for anomalous SAML sessions.

Fix this in Gateway Scoped from the published advisory
  • Consultation3.0 h
  • Implementation2.0 h
  • Testing2.0 h
  • Review / QA1.0 h
8.0 hours of engineering $1,440
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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-2020-8300 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