CVE-2020-5251 Information disclosure in parse-server
Attackers can extract valid session tokens via regex queries to take over user accounts in Parse Server.
- Exploited in the wild
- Not known
- Login needed
- Any signed-in user
- Attackable
- Over the internet
- Victim action needed
- A user has to click or open something
- Fix
- Available
What is CVE-2020-5251?
CVE-2020-5251 is a high-severity vulnerability in Parseplatform Parse-Server, published on 4 Mar 2020. Any signed-in user can exploit it over the network, and only if a user opens a file or follows a link.
Official description
In parser-server before version 4.1.0, you can fetch all the users objects, by using regex in the NoSQL query. Using the NoSQL, you can use a regex on sessionToken and find valid accounts this way.
Which versions are affected by CVE-2020-5251?
3 open source packages ship an affected version, including parse-server and parse. It affects 1 product.
| Package | Affected | Fixed in |
|---|---|---|
parse-server npm | All versions | 4.1.0 |
parse-server npm | All versions | 4.1.0 |
parse Bitnami | All versions | 4.1.0 |
Products include Parseplatform Parse-Server.
How do I fix CVE-2020-5251?
Upgrade parse-server to 4.1.0 or later.
Is CVE-2020-5251 being exploited?
There is no known exploitation of CVE-2020-5251 in the wild and no public exploit code.
Other vulnerabilities in Parseplatform Parse-Server
- CVE-2026-30966 Parse Server role escalation and CLP bypass via direct `_Join` table write
- CVE-2024-27298 Parse Server literalizeRegexPart SQL Injection
- CVE-2022-24760 Command Injection in Parse server
- CVE-2026-30965 Parse Server session token exfiltration via `redirectClassNameForKey` query parameter
- CVE-2023-36475 Parse Server vulnerable to remote code execution via MongoDB BSON parser through prototype pollution
Sources
Also known as BIT-parse-2020-5251, GHSA-h4mf-75hf-67w4.