# CVE-2020-1735: Path Traversal in Ansible

> An attacker can intercept the Ansible fetch module to inject arbitrary paths, allowing modification of files on the controller node.

- **Severity:** Medium 4.2 (`CVSS:3.1/AV:L/AC:L/PR:H/UI:R/S:C/C:L/I:L/A:N`)
- **Exploited in the wild:** Not known
- **Login needed:** An administrator
- **Attackable:** Local or same network only
- **Victim action needed:** A user has to click or open something
- **Fix available:** Yes
- **Published:** 16 Mar 2020
- **Updated:** 4 Aug 2024
- **Also known as:** DEBIAN-CVE-2020-1735, GHSA-gfr2-qpxh-qj9m, PYSEC-2020-7, UBUNTU-CVE-2020-1735

## What is CVE-2020-1735?

CVE-2020-1735 is a medium-severity path traversal vulnerability in Debian Debian Linux, published on 16 Mar 2020. It can only be exploited from the same machine or local network, and only if a user opens a file or follows a link.

### Official description

A flaw was found in the Ansible Engine when the fetch module is used. An attacker could intercept the module, inject a new path, and then choose a new destination path on the controller node. All versions in 2.7.x, 2.8.x and 2.9.x branches are believed to be vulnerable.

Weakness: CWE-22 (Improper Limitation of a Pathname to a Restricted Directory)

## Which versions are affected by CVE-2020-1735?

7 open source packages ship an affected version, including ansible. It affects 6 products.


| Package | Ecosystem | Affected | Fixed in |
| --- | --- | --- | --- |
| `ansible` | PyPI | All versions | 2.7.17, 2.8.9, 2.9.6 |
| `ansible` | PyPI | From 2.7.0a1 | 2.7.18 |
| `ansible` | PyPI | From 2.7.0a1 | 2.7.18 |
| `ansible` | PyPI | From 2.8.0a1 | 2.8.12 |
| `ansible` | PyPI | From 2.8.0a1 | 2.8.12 |
| `ansible` | PyPI | From 2.9.0a1 | 2.9.8 |
| `ansible` | PyPI | From 2.9.0a1 | 2.9.8 |

Products: Debian Debian Linux, Fedoraproject Fedora, Redhat Ansible, Redhat Ansible Tower, Redhat Cloudforms Management Engine, Redhat Openstack.

## How do I fix CVE-2020-1735?

Upgrade ansible to a fixed version for your release line: 2.7.17, 2.8.9, 2.9.6 or 2.7.18.

## Is CVE-2020-1735 being exploited?

There is no known exploitation of CVE-2020-1735 in the wild and no public exploit code.

## Other vulnerabilities in Debian Debian Linux

- [CVE-2015-3306](https://insights.sbomify.com/CVE-2015-3306/): ProFTPD Improper Access Control (critical 10.0, exploited in the wild)
- [CVE-2025-49113](https://insights.sbomify.com/CVE-2025-49113/): RoundCube Webmail Deserialization of Untrusted Data (critical 9.9, exploited in the wild)
- [CVE-2026-24061](https://insights.sbomify.com/CVE-2026-24061/): GNU InetUtils Argument Injection (critical 9.8, exploited in the wild)
- [CVE-2025-39682](https://insights.sbomify.com/CVE-2025-39682/): Linux Kernel Improper Check for Unusual or Exceptional Conditions (critical 9.8, exploited in the wild)
- [CVE-2024-9680](https://insights.sbomify.com/CVE-2024-9680/): Mozilla Firefox Use-After-Free (critical 9.8, exploited in the wild)

## Fix prompt for AI coding agents

```text
Check this codebase for CVE-2020-1735 and fix it if it is affected.

What it is: CVE-2020-1735 is a medium-severity path traversal vulnerability in Debian Debian Linux, published on 16 Mar 2020. It can only be exploited from the same machine or local network, and only if a user opens a file or follows a link.
Exploitation: There is no known exploitation of CVE-2020-1735 in the wild and no public exploit code.

Affected packages and fixed versions:
- ansible (PyPI): affected all versions; fixed in 2.7.17, 2.8.9, 2.9.6
- ansible (PyPI): affected from 2.7.0a1; fixed in 2.7.18
- ansible (PyPI): affected from 2.7.0a1; fixed in 2.7.18
- ansible (PyPI): affected from 2.8.0a1; fixed in 2.8.12
- ansible (PyPI): affected from 2.8.0a1; fixed in 2.8.12
- ansible (PyPI): affected from 2.9.0a1; fixed in 2.9.8
- ansible (PyPI): affected from 2.9.0a1; fixed in 2.9.8

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-2020-1735/ (Markdown: https://insights.sbomify.com/CVE-2020-1735/index.md)
```

## Sources

- CVE record: https://www.cve.org/CVERecord?id=CVE-2020-1735
- NVD: https://nvd.nist.gov/vuln/detail/CVE-2020-1735
- OSV: https://osv.dev/vulnerability/CVE-2020-1735

---
From sbomify Insights: https://insights.sbomify.com/CVE-2020-1735/
Summaries are generated and may contain mistakes; the official description above is the record.