# CVE-2020-4253: Auth bypass in Content Navigator

> Failure to invalidate sessions on logout allows authenticated users to impersonate others, requiring a patch for IBM Content Navigator.

- **Severity:** Medium 6.3 (`CVSS:3.0/PR:L/AC:L/A:L/AV:N/S:U/UI:N/C:L/I:L/RL:O/RC:C/E:U`)
- **Exploited in the wild:** Not known
- **Login needed:** Any signed-in user
- **Attackable:** Over the internet
- **Victim action needed:** Not needed
- **Fix available:** No
- **Published:** 24 Mar 2020
- **Updated:** 16 Sep 2024
- **Also known as:** GHSA-8mx2-gx23-v8q6

## What is CVE-2020-4253?

CVE-2020-4253 is a medium-severity authentication bypass vulnerability in IBM Content Navigator, published on 24 Mar 2020. Any signed-in user can exploit it over the network, with no action from the victim.

### Official description

IBM Content Navigator 3.0CD does not invalidate session after logout which could allow an authenticated user to impersonate another user on the system. IBM X-Force ID: 175559.

Weakness: CWE-613 (DEPRECATED: Insufficient Session Expiration)

## Which versions are affected by CVE-2020-4253?

It affects 1 product.


Products: Ibm Content Navigator.

## How do I fix CVE-2020-4253?

No fix has been published for CVE-2020-4253 yet. Limit exposure of the affected software until one is available.

## Is CVE-2020-4253 being exploited?

There is no known exploitation of CVE-2020-4253 in the wild and no public exploit code.

## Other vulnerabilities in IBM Content Navigator

- [CVE-2018-1364](https://insights.sbomify.com/CVE-2018-1364/): XML external entity in Content Navigator (high 8.2)
- [CVE-2018-1366](https://insights.sbomify.com/CVE-2018-1366/): Other in Content Navigator (high 7.8)
- [CVE-2022-43581](https://insights.sbomify.com/CVE-2022-43581/): IBM Content Navigator code execution (high 7.5)
- [CVE-2019-4092](https://insights.sbomify.com/CVE-2019-4092/): Open redirect in Content Navigator (medium 6.8)
- [CVE-2021-29714](https://insights.sbomify.com/CVE-2021-29714/): Denial of service in Content Navigator (medium 6.5)

## Fix prompt for AI coding agents

```text
Check this codebase for CVE-2020-4253 and fix it if it is affected.

What it is: CVE-2020-4253 is a medium-severity authentication bypass vulnerability in IBM Content Navigator, published on 24 Mar 2020. Any signed-in user can exploit it over the network, with no action from the victim.
Exploitation: There is no known exploitation of CVE-2020-4253 in the wild and no public exploit code.

Affected product: IBM Content Navigator. 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-2020-4253/ (Markdown: https://insights.sbomify.com/CVE-2020-4253/index.md)
```

## Sources

- CVE record: https://www.cve.org/CVERecord?id=CVE-2020-4253
- NVD: https://nvd.nist.gov/vuln/detail/CVE-2020-4253
- OSV: https://osv.dev/vulnerability/CVE-2020-4253

---
From sbomify Insights: https://insights.sbomify.com/CVE-2020-4253/
Summaries are generated and may contain mistakes; the official description above is the record.