XStream before version 1.4.14 is vulnerable to Remote Code Execution.The vulnerability may allow a remote attacker to run arbitrary shell commands only by manipulating the processed input stream. Only users who rely on blocklists are affected. Anyone using XStream's Security Framework allowlist is not affected. The linked advisory provides code workarounds for users who cannot upgrade. The issue is fixed in version 1.4.14.
CVE-2020-26217
This high-severity CVE scores 8.0 under NVD CVSS v3. EPSS exploit-prediction score not yet available (the EPSS model rescores nightly; freshly-published CVEs typically appear within 48 hours). GitHub Security Advisory data not yet ingested — confidence will rise once GHSA publishes (typical lag: hours to days for open-source ecosystem CVEs; never for infrastructure-only CVEs).
- High exploitation likelihood — EPSS 85%
A fix is available — apply it.
- CVSS v3
- 8.0
- EG Score
- 8.0(low)
- EPSS
- 99.7%
- KEV
- Not listed
Published
November 16, 2020
Last Modified
May 23, 2025
References (30)
- security-advisories@githubhttps://github.com/x-stream/xstream/commit/0fec095d534126931c99fd38e9c6d41f5c685c1a
- security-advisories@githubhttps://github.com/x-stream/xstream/security/advisories/GHSA-mw36-7c6c-q4q2
- security-advisories@githubhttps://lists.apache.org/thread.html/r2de526726e7f4db4a7cb91b7355070779f51a84fd985c6529c2f4e9e%40%3Cissues.activemq.apache.org%3E
- security-advisories@githubhttps://lists.apache.org/thread.html/r7c9fc255edc0b9cd9567093d131f6d33fde4c662aaf912460ef630e9%40%3Ccommits.camel.apache.org%3E
- security-advisories@githubhttps://lists.apache.org/thread.html/r826a006fda71cc96fc87b6eca4b5d195f19a292ad36cea501682c38c%40%3Cissues.activemq.apache.org%3E
- security-advisories@githubhttps://lists.apache.org/thread.html/redde3609b89b2a4ff18b536a06ef9a77deb93d47fda8ed28086fa8c3%40%3Cissues.activemq.apache.org%3E
- security-advisories@githubhttps://lists.debian.org/debian-lts-announce/2020/12/msg00001.html
- security-advisories@githubhttps://security.netapp.com/advisory/ntap-20210409-0004/
- security-advisories@githubhttps://www.debian.org/security/2020/dsa-4811
- security-advisories@githubhttps://www.oracle.com//security-alerts/cpujul2021.html
- security-advisories@githubhttps://www.oracle.com/security-alerts/cpuApr2021.html
- security-advisories@githubhttps://www.oracle.com/security-alerts/cpuapr2022.html
- security-advisories@githubhttps://www.oracle.com/security-alerts/cpujan2022.html
- security-advisories@githubhttps://www.oracle.com/security-alerts/cpuoct2021.html
- security-advisories@githubhttps://x-stream.github.io/CVE-2020-26217.html
Vendor Advisories for CVE-2020-26217(2)
These vendors published their own advisory mentioning this CVE — often with vendor-specific remediation steps + affected product lists not in NVD.
Patch Availability(7)
| Vendor / Ecosystem | Fixed in / Patch | Released | Source |
|---|---|---|---|
| ubuntu | libxstream-java (1.4.11.1-1~18.04.1) @ bionic | 2026-05-23 | ubuntu |
| ubuntu | libxstream-java (1.4.15-1ubuntu0.1) @ hirsute | 2026-05-23 | ubuntu |
| ubuntu | libxstream-java (1.4.8-1ubuntu0.1+esm3) @ xenial | 2026-05-23 | ubuntu |
| redhat | xstream | 2021-12-14 | redhat |
| redhat | patch | 2021-11-23 | redhat |
| redhat | patch | 2021-08-18 | redhat |
| redhat | xstream-0:1.3.1-12.el7_9 | 2021-01-18 | redhat |
Patches are aggregated from vendor advisories (Red Hat, Microsoft, Cisco, GitHub) and package ecosystems (OSV, GHSA). Multiple rows for the same upstream release have been deduplicated.
Affected Packages
(1 across 1 ecosystem)
Maven(1)
| Package | Vulnerable range | Fixed in | Dependents |
|---|---|---|---|
| com.thoughtworks.xstream:xstream | 0.1 ... 1.4.9 (37 versions) | 1.4.14-java7 | — |
Weakness Classification(1)
MITRE Common Weakness Enumeration — the root-cause categories this CVE belongs to.
Additional Vendor Advisories
(9)
Vendors that published advisories for this CVE beyond the curated set above. Broader coverage but minimal per-row detail — click through for the original advisory.
- Red HatRHSA-2021:0105IMPORTANT2020-11-16
RHSA-2021:0105 — Important
- Red HatRHSA-2021:0106IMPORTANT2020-11-16
RHSA-2021:0106 — Important
- Red HatRHSA-2021:0162IMPORTANT2020-11-16
RHSA-2021:0162 — Important
- Red HatRHSA-2021:0433IMPORTANT2020-11-16
RHSA-2021:0433 — Important
- Red HatRHSA-2021:3205IMPORTANT2020-11-16
RHSA-2021:3205 — Important
- Red HatRHSA-2021:4767IMPORTANT2020-11-16
RHSA-2021:4767 — Important
- UbuntuUSN-4714-1MEDIUM
XStream vulnerabilities
- UbuntuUSN-4943-1MEDIUM
XStream vulnerabilities
- UbuntuUSN-6978-1MEDIUM
XStream vulnerabilities
Data Freshness Timeline
(refreshed 4× in last 7d / 19× in last 30d)
Each row is a source pipeline that fetched or updated this CVE on that date, with what changed. For example, "NVD update" means NVD published or revised its analysis for this CVE; "MITRE cvelistV5" means we ingested or refreshed it from the CNA feed. Most recent first.
- 2026-07-09 19:07 UTCEPSS rescore
- 2026-07-07 13:43 UTCEPSS rescore
- 2026-07-06 16:25 UTCEPSS rescore
- 2026-07-06 16:25 UTCEPSS rescore
- 2026-07-04 06:29 UTCEPSS rescore
- 2026-07-04 06:29 UTCEPSS rescore
- 2026-06-27 03:06 UTCEPSS rescore
- 2026-06-27 03:06 UTCEPSS rescore
- 2026-06-24 14:03 UTCEPSS rescore
- 2026-06-24 14:03 UTCEPSS rescore
- 2026-06-24 08:50 UTCOSV refresh
- 2026-06-23 21:31 UTCEPSS rescore
- 2026-06-23 21:31 UTCEPSS rescore
- 2026-06-21 14:54 UTCEPSS rescore
- 2026-06-21 14:54 UTCEPSS rescore
- 2026-06-16 17:50 UTCEPSS rescore
- 2026-06-15 17:46 UTCEPSS rescore
- 2026-06-14 23:15 UTCEPSS rescore
- 2026-06-12 23:10 UTCEPSS rescore
- 2026-06-08 14:15 UTCEPSS rescore
- 2026-06-08 14:15 UTCEPSS rescore
- 2026-06-07 15:23 UTCEPSS rescore
- 2026-06-07 15:23 UTCEPSS rescore
- 2026-06-07 12:29 UTCOSV refresh
- 2026-06-06 13:45 UTCEPSS rescore
Show 8 moreShow fewer
- 2026-06-06 13:45 UTCEPSS rescore
- 2026-06-02 20:11 UTCEPSS rescore
- 2026-06-02 20:11 UTCEPSS rescore
- 2026-05-27 13:39 UTCEPSS rescore
- 2026-05-26 07:17 UTCEPSS rescore
- 2026-05-26 07:17 UTCEPSS rescore
- 2026-05-23 05:09 UTCEG score recompute
- 2026-05-23 05:09 UTCVendor advisory
Publicly available exploits
(4 references)Working exploit code is in the public domain (3 GitHub PoCs). Defenders should treat patch urgency accordingly — public PoCs typically lead to mass-exploitation within 24-72 hours.
- GitHub PoCKairo-one/CVE-2020-26217-XStreamFirst seen Dec 1, 2025
CVE-2020-26217 XStream反序列化的poc
Open source ↗ - GitHub PoCAl1ex/CVE-2020-26217First seen Jan 22, 2021
CVE-2020-26217 && XStream RCE
Open source ↗ - GitHub PoCnovysodope/CVE-2020-26217-XStream-RCE-POCFirst seen Dec 8, 2020
CVE-2020-26217 XStream RCE POC
Open source ↗ - Nucleihttp/cves/2020/CVE-2020-26217.yamlFirst seen Jan 1, 2020
XStream <1.4.14 - Remote Code Execution
Open source ↗
Related CVEs(same vendor + same CWE)
Same vendor
10 shownredhat
Same CWE
10 shownCWE-78
Frequently asked(5)
What is CVE-2020-26217?
When was CVE-2020-26217 disclosed?
Is CVE-2020-26217 actively exploited?
What is the CVSS score of CVE-2020-26217?
How do I remediate CVE-2020-26217?
Dependency Blast Radius
See which npm, PyPI, Go, and Maven packages are affected by CVE-2020-26217
Is Your Infrastructure Affected by CVE-2020-26217?
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