# CVE-2020-13625: Insufficient output escaping of attachment names in PHPMailer

> An output escaping bug in PHPMailer allows file attachment names with double quotes to cause misinterpretation of file types by mail relays or receivers.

- **Severity:** High 7.5 (`CVSS:3.1/AV:N/AC:L/PR:N/UI:N/S:U/C:N/I:H/A:N`)
- **Exploited in the wild:** Not known
- **Login needed:** Not needed
- **Attackable:** Over the internet
- **Victim action needed:** Not needed
- **Fix available:** Yes
- **Published:** 8 Jun 2020
- **Updated:** 4 Aug 2024
- **Also known as:** BIT-phpmailer-2020-13625, DEBIAN-CVE-2020-13625, DLA-2244-1, DLA-2306-1, GHSA-f7hx-fqxw-rvvj, MGASA-2020-0313, UBUNTU-CVE-2020-13625, USN-4505-1

## What is CVE-2020-13625?

CVE-2020-13625 is a high-severity vulnerability in Canonical Ubuntu Linux, published on 8 Jun 2020. An attacker can exploit it over the internet without logging in, with no action from the victim.

### Official description

PHPMailer before 6.1.6 contains an output escaping bug when the name of a file attachment contains a double quote character. This can result in the file type being misinterpreted by the receiver or any mail relay processing the message.

Weakness: CWE-116 (Improper Encoding or Escaping of Output)

## Which versions are affected by CVE-2020-13625?

3 open source packages ship an affected version, including phpmailer/phpmailer and phpmailer. It affects 4 products.


| Package | Ecosystem | Affected | Fixed in |
| --- | --- | --- | --- |
| `phpmailer/phpmailer` | Packagist | All versions | 6.1.6 |
| `phpmailer/phpmailer` | Packagist | All versions | 6.1.6 |
| `phpmailer` | Bitnami | All versions | 6.1.6 |

Products: Canonical Ubuntu Linux, Debian Debian Linux, Fedoraproject Fedora, Phpmailer Project Phpmailer.

## How do I fix CVE-2020-13625?

Upgrade phpmailer/phpmailer to 6.1.6 or later.

## Is CVE-2020-13625 being exploited?

There is no known exploitation of CVE-2020-13625 in the wild and no public exploit code.

## Other vulnerabilities in Canonical Ubuntu Linux

- [CVE-2020-11651](https://insights.sbomify.com/CVE-2020-11651/): SaltStack Salt Authentication Bypass (critical 9.8, exploited in the wild)
- [CVE-2020-7247](https://insights.sbomify.com/CVE-2020-7247/): OpenSMTPD Remote Code Execution (critical 9.8, exploited in the wild)
- [CVE-2019-16928](https://insights.sbomify.com/CVE-2019-16928/): Exim Out-of-bounds Write (critical 9.8, exploited in the wild)
- [CVE-2018-6789](https://insights.sbomify.com/CVE-2018-6789/): Exim Buffer Overflow (critical 9.8, exploited in the wild)
- [CVE-2015-2590](https://insights.sbomify.com/CVE-2015-2590/): Oracle Java SE and Java SE Embedded Remote Code Execution (critical 9.8, exploited in the wild)

## Fix prompt for AI coding agents

```text
Check this codebase for CVE-2020-13625 and fix it if it is affected.

What it is: CVE-2020-13625 is a high-severity vulnerability in Canonical Ubuntu Linux, published on 8 Jun 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-2020-13625 in the wild and no public exploit code.

Affected packages and fixed versions:
- phpmailer/phpmailer (Packagist): affected all versions; fixed in 6.1.6
- phpmailer/phpmailer (Packagist): affected all versions; fixed in 6.1.6
- phpmailer (Bitnami): affected all versions; fixed in 6.1.6

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-2020-13625/ (Markdown: https://insights.sbomify.com/CVE-2020-13625/index.md)
```

## Sources

- CVE record: https://www.cve.org/CVERecord?id=CVE-2020-13625
- NVD: https://nvd.nist.gov/vuln/detail/CVE-2020-13625
- OSV: https://osv.dev/vulnerability/CVE-2020-13625

---
From sbomify Insights: https://insights.sbomify.com/CVE-2020-13625/
Summaries are generated and may contain mistakes; the official description above is the record.