# CVE-2020-11105: Use after free in n/a

> The cereal library uses raw pointer addresses for shared_ptr caching, leading to use-after-free issues and potential memory corruption or data leakage.

- **Severity:** Critical 9.8 (`CVSS:3.1/AV:N/AC:L/PR:N/UI:N/S:U/C:H/I:H/A:H`)
- **Exploited in the wild:** Not known
- **Login needed:** Not needed
- **Attackable:** Over the internet
- **Victim action needed:** Not needed
- **Fix available:** Yes
- **Published:** 30 Mar 2020
- **Updated:** 4 Aug 2024
- **Also known as:** GHSA-wgww-fh2f-c855, openSUSE-SU-2024:12197-1

## What is CVE-2020-11105?

CVE-2020-11105 is a critical use after free vulnerability in n/a, published on 30 Mar 2020. An attacker can exploit it over the internet without logging in, with no action from the victim.

### Official description

An issue was discovered in USC iLab cereal through 1.3.0. It employs caching of std::shared_ptr values, using the raw pointer address as a unique identifier. This becomes problematic if an std::shared_ptr variable goes out of scope and is freed, and a new std::shared_ptr is allocated at the same address. Serialization fidelity thereby becomes dependent upon memory layout. In short, serialized std::shared_ptr variables cannot always be expected to serialize back into their original values. This can have any number of consequences, depending on the context within which this manifests.

Weakness: CWE-763 (Release of Invalid Pointer or Reference)

## Which versions are affected by CVE-2020-11105?

It affects 1 product.


| Package | Ecosystem | Affected | Fixed in |
| --- | --- | --- | --- |
| `cereal` | openSUSE:Tumbleweed | All versions | 1.3.2-1.1 |

Products: Usc Cereal.

## How do I fix CVE-2020-11105?

Upgrade to a fixed version.

## Is CVE-2020-11105 being exploited?

There is no known exploitation of CVE-2020-11105 in the wild and no public exploit code.

## Other vulnerabilities in n/a

- [CVE-2020-11104](https://insights.sbomify.com/CVE-2020-11104/): Information disclosure in n/a (medium 5.3)

## Fix prompt for AI coding agents

```text
Check this codebase for CVE-2020-11105 and fix it if it is affected.

What it is: CVE-2020-11105 is a critical use after free vulnerability in n/a, published on 30 Mar 2020. An attacker can exploit it over the internet without logging in, with no action from the victim.
Exploitation: There is no known exploitation of CVE-2020-11105 in the wild and no public exploit code.

Affected product: n/a. No package-level version data is available, so check the vendor advisory linked from the reference page.

Task:
1. Search the dependency manifests and lockfiles (for example package.json, package-lock.json, requirements.txt, poetry.lock, uv.lock, pom.xml, build.gradle, go.mod, Cargo.lock, Gemfile.lock) and any Dockerfiles for the affected packages, including transitive dependencies.
2. If an affected version is in use, upgrade it to the fixed version for its release line with the project's package manager, so the lockfile is regenerated. Prefer the smallest upgrade that fixes it.
3. If there is no fix, or the upgrade would break the build, do not guess: explain the risk and the safest workaround instead.
4. Run the tests and summarise what changed and why.
5. If nothing in the project is affected, say so and change nothing.

Reference: https://insights.sbomify.com/CVE-2020-11105/ (Markdown: https://insights.sbomify.com/CVE-2020-11105/index.md)
```

## Sources

- CVE record: https://www.cve.org/CVERecord?id=CVE-2020-11105
- NVD: https://nvd.nist.gov/vuln/detail/CVE-2020-11105
- OSV: https://osv.dev/vulnerability/CVE-2020-11105

---
From sbomify Insights: https://insights.sbomify.com/CVE-2020-11105/
Summaries are generated and may contain mistakes; the official description above is the record.