# CVE-2020-8838: Code injection in n/a

> Attackers can execute arbitrary code with SYSTEM privileges on agent machines via a man-in-the-middle attack during Windows agent upgrades.

- **Severity:** Medium 6.4 (`CVSS:3.1/AV:A/AC:H/PR:H/UI:N/S:U/C:H/I:H/A:H`)
- **Exploited in the wild:** Not known
- **Login needed:** An administrator
- **Attackable:** Local or same network only
- **Victim action needed:** Not needed
- **Fix available:** No
- **Published:** 23 Mar 2020
- **Updated:** 4 Aug 2024
- **Also known as:** GHSA-p5wp-2qp8-cc84

## What is CVE-2020-8838?

CVE-2020-8838 is a medium-severity code injection vulnerability in n/a, published on 23 Mar 2020. It can only be exploited from the same machine or local network, with no action from the victim.

### Official description

An issue was discovered in Zoho ManageEngine AssetExplorer 6.5. During an upgrade of the Windows agent, it does not validate the source and binary downloaded. This allows an attacker on an adjacent network to execute code with NT AUTHORITY/SYSTEM privileges on the agent machines by providing an arbitrary executable via a man-in-the-middle attack.

Weakness: CWE-354 (Improper Validation of Integrity Check Value)

## Which versions are affected by CVE-2020-8838?

It affects 1 product.


Products: Zohocorp Manageengine Assetexplorer.

## How do I fix CVE-2020-8838?

No fix has been published for CVE-2020-8838 yet. Limit exposure of the affected software until one is available.

## Is CVE-2020-8838 being exploited?

There is no known exploitation of CVE-2020-8838 in the wild and no public exploit code.

## Other vulnerabilities in n/a

- [CVE-2021-20110](https://insights.sbomify.com/CVE-2021-20110/): Integer overflow in Manage Engine Asset Explorer Agent (critical 9.8)
- [CVE-2019-12994](https://insights.sbomify.com/CVE-2019-12994/): Server-side request forgery in n/a (critical 9.1)
- [CVE-2019-12959](https://insights.sbomify.com/CVE-2019-12959/): Server-side request forgery in n/a (high 8.8)
- [CVE-2019-14693](https://insights.sbomify.com/CVE-2019-14693/): XML external entity in n/a (high 8.5)
- [CVE-2023-26601](https://insights.sbomify.com/CVE-2023-26601/): Denial of service in n/a (high 7.5)

## Fix prompt for AI coding agents

```text
Check this codebase for CVE-2020-8838 and fix it if it is affected.

What it is: CVE-2020-8838 is a medium-severity code injection vulnerability in n/a, published on 23 Mar 2020. It can only be exploited from the same machine or local network, with no action from the victim.
Exploitation: There is no known exploitation of CVE-2020-8838 in the wild and no public exploit code.

Affected product: n/a. 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-2020-8838/ (Markdown: https://insights.sbomify.com/CVE-2020-8838/index.md)
```

## Sources

- CVE record: https://www.cve.org/CVERecord?id=CVE-2020-8838
- NVD: https://nvd.nist.gov/vuln/detail/CVE-2020-8838
- OSV: https://osv.dev/vulnerability/CVE-2020-8838

---
From sbomify Insights: https://insights.sbomify.com/CVE-2020-8838/
Summaries are generated and may contain mistakes; the official description above is the record.