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Public proof of concept

CVE-2020-36939

Cassandra Web 0.5.0 - Remote File Read

A public proof of concept exists; no exploitation attested.

  • Published2026-01-27
  • WeaknessCWE-22

Am I affected?

With a domain, we read the version its public headers and pages expose. A distribution build can carry the fix under an older number.

Description

Cassandra Web 0.5.0 contains a directory traversal vulnerability that allows unauthenticated attackers to read arbitrary files by manipulating path traversal parameters. Attackers can exploit the disabled Rack::Protection module to read sensitive system files like /etc/passwd and retrieve Apache Cassandra database credentials.

Timeline

dates in UTC
  1. 2026-01-2716:16CVE publishedNVD

Versions per branch

OSV
cassandra-web
BranchAffectedFixed in
0.5≤ 0.5.0no fix published

as publishedRanges as NVD and OSV publish them; a distribution’s build can be fixed under an older number.

Products declared by the CNA1 product

As VulnCheck, the CNA that assigned this CVE, declared them in the CVE record; versions as written.

  • avalanche123 Cassandra Web
    Affected
    • = 0.5.0no fix stated

Source: the CNA record (CVE Program), © The MITRE Corporation,CVE Terms of UseCVE recordupdated 2026-10-08

Fix

No fix published by the sources we read yet. NVD record

Detection

Nuclei template
none so far
ProjectDiscovery
Exploit-DB
no entry
Exploit-DB
Proof of concept
Metasploit modules
1 moduleauxiliary/scanner/http/cassandra_web_file_readrank: normalModule metadata: Metasploit Framework, © Rapid7, Inc., BSD-3-Clause.
Metasploit Framework

Sources

Identifiers

Technical details

CVSS v3 Vector
CVSS:3.1/AV:N/AC:L/PR:N/UI:N/S:U/C:H/I:N/A:N
CVSS 4.0 vector
CVSS:4.0/AV:N/AC:L/AT:N/PR:N/UI:N/VC:H/VI:N/VA:N/SC:N/SI:N/SA:N/E:X/CR:X/IR:X/AR:X/MAV:X/MAC:X/MAT:X/MPR:X/MUI:X/MVC:X/MVI:X/MVA:X/MSC:X/MSI:X/MSA:X/S:X/AU:X/R:X/V:X/RE:X/U:X
Published
2026-01-27
Last Modified
2026-10-08
NVD status
Deferred
GitHub Advisory
GHSA-8mfv-xhp5-48q9

Frequently asked questions

What is CVE-2020-36939?

Cassandra Web 0.5.0 contains a directory traversal vulnerability that allows unauthenticated attackers to read arbitrary files by manipulating path traversal parameters. Attackers can exploit the disabled Rack::Protection module to read sensitive system files like /etc/passwd and retrieve Apache Cassandra database credentials.

Is CVE-2020-36939 actively exploited?

Active exploitation of CVE-2020-36939 has not been confirmed. Its EPSS score was 3.0% on 2026-11-08, the estimated probability of exploitation in the next 30 days.

What is the CVSS score for CVE-2020-36939?

CVE-2020-36939 has a CVSS v3 base score of 7.5 (HIGH severity), with vector string CVSS:3.1/AV:N/AC:L/PR:N/UI:N/S:U/C:H/I:N/A:N.

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Sources for this record