# CVE-2020-1904: Path traversal in WhatsApp Business for iOS

> Attackers can overwrite files via directory traversal by sending specially crafted Office documents to WhatsApp iOS users.

- **Severity:** Medium 5.5 (`CVSS:3.1/AV:L/AC:L/PR:N/UI:R/S:U/C:N/I:H/A:N`)
- **Exploited in the wild:** Not known
- **Login needed:** Not needed
- **Attackable:** Local or same network only
- **Victim action needed:** A user has to click or open something
- **Fix available:** No
- **Published:** 6 Oct 2020
- **Updated:** 4 Aug 2024
- **Also known as:** GHSA-v6f2-92p8-cg2q

## What is CVE-2020-1904?

CVE-2020-1904 is a medium-severity path traversal vulnerability in Facebook WhatsApp Business for iOS, published on 6 Oct 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 path validation issue in WhatsApp for iOS prior to v2.20.61 and WhatsApp Business for iOS prior to v2.20.61 could have allowed for directory traversal overwriting files when sending specially crafted docx, xlsx, and pptx files as attachments to messages.

Weakness: CWE-22 (Improper Limitation of a Pathname to a Restricted Directory), CWE-23 (Relative Path Traversal)

## Which versions are affected by CVE-2020-1904?

It affects 2 products.


Products: Whatsapp Whatsapp, Whatsapp Whatsapp Business.

## How do I fix CVE-2020-1904?

No fix has been published for CVE-2020-1904 yet. Limit exposure of the affected software until one is available.

## Is CVE-2020-1904 being exploited?

There is no known exploitation of CVE-2020-1904 in the wild and no public exploit code.

## Other vulnerabilities in Facebook WhatsApp Business for iOS

- [CVE-2019-3568](https://insights.sbomify.com/CVE-2019-3568/): WhatsApp VOIP Stack Buffer Overflow (critical 9.8, exploited in the wild)
- [CVE-2019-18426](https://insights.sbomify.com/CVE-2019-18426/): WhatsApp Cross-Site Scripting (high 8.2, exploited in the wild)
- [CVE-2025-55177](https://insights.sbomify.com/CVE-2025-55177/): Meta Platforms WhatsApp Incorrect Authorization (medium 5.4, exploited in the wild)
- [CVE-2022-36934](https://insights.sbomify.com/CVE-2022-36934/): Integer overflow in WhatsApp Business for Android (critical 9.8)
- [CVE-2021-24042](https://insights.sbomify.com/CVE-2021-24042/): Memory corruption in WhatsApp Business for Android (critical 9.8)

## Fix prompt for AI coding agents

```text
Check this codebase for CVE-2020-1904 and fix it if it is affected.

What it is: CVE-2020-1904 is a medium-severity path traversal vulnerability in Facebook WhatsApp Business for iOS, published on 6 Oct 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-2020-1904 in the wild and no public exploit code.

Affected product: Facebook WhatsApp Business for iOS. 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-2020-1904/ (Markdown: https://insights.sbomify.com/CVE-2020-1904/index.md)
```

## Sources

- CVE record: https://www.cve.org/CVERecord?id=CVE-2020-1904
- NVD: https://nvd.nist.gov/vuln/detail/CVE-2020-1904
- OSV: https://osv.dev/vulnerability/CVE-2020-1904

---
From sbomify Insights: https://insights.sbomify.com/CVE-2020-1904/
Summaries are generated and may contain mistakes; the official description above is the record.