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PatchSiren cyber security CVE debrief

CVE-2020-11652 SaltStack CVE debrief

CVE-2020-11652 is a SaltStack Salt path traversal vulnerability that CISA lists in its Known Exploited Vulnerabilities catalog. For defenders, the key signal is not just the vulnerability type, but that it is treated as known exploited and should be prioritized for remediation using vendor guidance.

Vendor
SaltStack
Product
Salt
CVSS
Unknown
CISA KEV
Listed
Original CVE published
2021-11-03
Original CVE updated
2021-11-03
Advisory published
2021-11-03
Advisory updated
2021-11-03

Who should care

Organizations running SaltStack Salt, especially teams responsible for patching, configuration management, and exposure reduction in environments where Salt services are deployed.

Technical summary

The available official records identify CVE-2020-11652 as a path traversal issue in SaltStack Salt. CISA has placed it in the Known Exploited Vulnerabilities catalog and instructs affected users to apply updates per vendor instructions.

Defensive priority

High. CISA KEV inclusion means this issue should be treated as a priority remediation item rather than a routine advisory, especially for any internet-facing or broadly deployed Salt instances.

Recommended defensive actions

  • Apply vendor-provided updates or mitigation guidance for SaltStack Salt as directed by the vendor.
  • Inventory all SaltStack Salt deployments to confirm whether any affected versions are present.
  • Prioritize remediation on externally reachable or operationally sensitive systems first.
  • Validate that patching completed successfully and that affected systems remain in compliance with security baselines.
  • Monitor CISA KEV and vendor advisories for any follow-up guidance related to CVE-2020-11652.

Evidence notes

The debrief is limited to the supplied official records: the CVE record, NVD entry, and CISA KEV listing. The corpus confirms the vulnerability name, affected vendor/product family, and that CISA considers it known exploited. No additional technical impact details were used.

Sources and references

Verified primary and authoritative sources

  • CVE-2020-11652 CVE Program record

    Publisher, destination, and source semantics verified

    URL: https://www.cve.org/CVERecord?id=CVE-2020-11652

    CVE Program - Official CVE Program record with source-provided CVE metadata.

  • CVE-2020-11652 NVD vulnerability detail

    Publisher, destination, and source semantics verified

    URL: https://nvd.nist.gov/vuln/detail/CVE-2020-11652

    NIST National Vulnerability Database - Official NIST NVD detail page and source-specific vulnerability assessment.

  • CISA Known Exploited Vulnerabilities catalog

    Publisher, destination, and source semantics verified

    URL: https://www.cisa.gov/known-exploited-vulnerabilities-catalog

    Cybersecurity and Infrastructure Security Agency - Official CISA catalog of vulnerabilities known to be exploited in the wild.

Supplemental references

  • Source item URL

    Unverified legacy reference

    URL: https://www.cisa.gov/sites/default/files/feeds/known_exploited_vulnerabilities.json

    cisa_kev

Methodology and review provenance

AI-assisted synthesis based on stored public vulnerability evidence. System validation, approval state, and publication status do not by themselves establish human review of this revision. PatchSiren helps prioritize defensive review and does not prove exposure or remediation on any system.