# CVE-2020-15184: Aliases are never checked in Helm

> Attackers can inject unwanted information into Helm charts via unsanitized alias fields, potentially altering chart behavior or metadata.

- **Severity:** Low 3.7 (`CVSS:3.1/AV:N/AC:H/PR:N/UI:N/S:U/C:N/I:L/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:** 17 Sep 2020
- **Updated:** 4 Aug 2024
- **Also known as:** BIT-helm-2020-15184, GHSA-9vp5-m38w-j776

## What is CVE-2020-15184?

CVE-2020-15184 is a low-severity vulnerability in helm, published on 17 Sep 2020. An attacker can exploit it over the internet without logging in, with no action from the victim.

### Official description

In Helm before versions 2.16.11 and 3.3.2 there is a bug in which the `alias` field on a `Chart.yaml` is not properly sanitized. This could lead to the injection of unwanted information into a chart. This issue has been patched in Helm 3.3.2 and 2.16.11. A possible workaround is to manually review the `dependencies` field of any untrusted chart, verifying that the `alias` field is either not used, or (if used) does not contain newlines or path characters.

Weakness: CWE-74 (Improper Neutralization of Special Elements in Output Used by a Downstream Component), CWE-20 (Improper Input Validation)

## Which versions are affected by CVE-2020-15184?

5 open source packages ship an affected version, including helm.sh/helm, helm and helm.sh/helm/v3. It affects 1 product.


| Package | Ecosystem | Affected | Fixed in |
| --- | --- | --- | --- |
| `helm.sh/helm` | Go | All versions | 2.16.11 |
| `helm.sh/helm` | Go | All versions | 2.16.11 |
| `helm` | Bitnami | From 2.0.0 | 2.16.11, 3.3.2 |
| `helm.sh/helm/v3` | Go | From 3.0.0 | 3.3.2 |
| `helm.sh/helm/v3` | Go | From 3.0.0 | 3.3.2 |

Products: Helm Helm.

## How do I fix CVE-2020-15184?

Upgrade helm.sh/helm to 2.16.11 or later.

## Is CVE-2020-15184 being exploited?

There is no known exploitation of CVE-2020-15184 in the wild and no public exploit code.

## Other vulnerabilities in helm

- [CVE-2019-18658](https://insights.sbomify.com/CVE-2019-18658/): Helm Unsafe Link Following (critical 9.8)
- [CVE-2019-1010275](https://insights.sbomify.com/CVE-2019-1010275/): Helm Improper Certificate Validation (critical 9.8)
- [CVE-2019-25210](https://insights.sbomify.com/CVE-2019-25210/): Information disclosure in n/a (critical 9.1)
- [CVE-2025-53547](https://insights.sbomify.com/CVE-2025-53547/): Helm Chart Dependency Updating With Malicious Chart.yaml Content And Symlink Can Lead To Code Execution (high 8.5)
- [CVE-2020-11013](https://insights.sbomify.com/CVE-2020-11013/): lookup Function Information Discolosure in Helm (high 8.5)

## Fix prompt for AI coding agents

```text
Check this codebase for CVE-2020-15184 and fix it if it is affected.

What it is: CVE-2020-15184 is a low-severity vulnerability in helm, published on 17 Sep 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-2020-15184 in the wild and no public exploit code.

Affected packages and fixed versions:
- helm.sh/helm (Go): affected all versions; fixed in 2.16.11
- helm.sh/helm (Go): affected all versions; fixed in 2.16.11
- helm (Bitnami): affected from 2.0.0; fixed in 2.16.11, 3.3.2
- helm.sh/helm/v3 (Go): affected from 3.0.0; fixed in 3.3.2
- helm.sh/helm/v3 (Go): affected from 3.0.0; fixed in 3.3.2

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-2020-15184/ (Markdown: https://insights.sbomify.com/CVE-2020-15184/index.md)
```

## Sources

- CVE record: https://www.cve.org/CVERecord?id=CVE-2020-15184
- NVD: https://nvd.nist.gov/vuln/detail/CVE-2020-15184
- OSV: https://osv.dev/vulnerability/CVE-2020-15184

---
From sbomify Insights: https://insights.sbomify.com/CVE-2020-15184/
Summaries are generated and may contain mistakes; the official description above is the record.