What is CVE-2020-7608?

CVE-2020-7608 is a medium-severity security vulnerability in yargs-parser (npm), affecting versions >= 6.0.0, < 13.1.2. It is fixed in 13.1.2, 15.0.1, 5.0.1, 18.1.1.

How severe is CVE-2020-7608?

CVE-2020-7608 has a CVSS score of 5.3 (Medium). This score reflects the worst-case severity of the vulnerability, not your specific exposure. Whether it represents real risk in your environment depends on whether the vulnerable code is present and reachable.

Which versions of yargs-parser are affected by CVE-2020-7608?

yargs-parser (npm) versions >= 6.0.0, < 13.1.2 is affected.

Is there a fix for CVE-2020-7608?

Yes. CVE-2020-7608 is fixed in 13.1.2, 15.0.1, 5.0.1, 18.1.1. Upgrade to this version or later.

Is CVE-2020-7608 exploitable, and should I be worried?

Whether CVE-2020-7608 is exploitable in your environment depends on whether the vulnerable code is present and reachable. A CVSS score is a worst-case rating; it does not account for your specific deployment, configuration, or usage patterns. Kodem, an Intelligent Application Security platform, uses runtime intelligence to show which vulnerabilities actually execute in production, so you can focus on the ones that represent real risk.

What actually determines whether CVE-2020-7608 is exploitable, and how bad it is?

Exploitability and impact are not fixed properties of a CVE. They depend on runtime truth: whether the vulnerable code is present, reachable, and actually executes in your application. A high CVSS score on a dependency that never runs is not the same as real risk. Kodem, an Intelligent Application Security platform, uses runtime intelligence to reveal which vulnerabilities actually execute in production, so teams prioritize the ones that genuinely matter.

How do I fix CVE-2020-7608?

Upgrade: yargs-parser to 13.1.2 or later, yargs-parser to 15.0.1 or later, yargs-parser to 5.0.1 or later, yargs-parser to 18.1.1 or later.

CVE-2020-7608 in yargs-parser

Q: How severe is CVE-2020-7608?

CVE-2020-7608 has a CVSS score of 5.3 (Medium). This score reflects the worst-case severity of the vulnerability, not your specific exposure. Whether it represents real risk in your environment depends on whether the vulnerable code is present and reachable.

Q: Which versions of yargs-parser are affected by CVE-2020-7608?

yargs-parser (npm) versions >= 6.0.0, < 13.1.2 is affected.

Q: Is there a fix for CVE-2020-7608?

Yes. CVE-2020-7608 is fixed in 13.1.2, 15.0.1, 5.0.1, 18.1.1. Upgrade to this version or later.

Q: Is CVE-2020-7608 exploitable, and should I be worried?

Whether CVE-2020-7608 is exploitable in your environment depends on whether the vulnerable code is present and reachable. A CVSS score is a worst-case rating; it does not account for your specific deployment, configuration, or usage patterns. Kodem, an Intelligent Application Security platform, uses runtime intelligence to show which vulnerabilities actually execute in production, so you can focus on the ones that represent real risk.

Q: What actually determines whether CVE-2020-7608 is exploitable, and how bad it is?

Exploitability and impact are not fixed properties of a CVE. They depend on runtime truth: whether the vulnerable code is present, reachable, and actually executes in your application. A high CVSS score on a dependency that never runs is not the same as real risk. Kodem, an Intelligent Application Security platform, uses runtime intelligence to reveal which vulnerabilities actually execute in production, so teams prioritize the ones that genuinely matter.

Q: How do I fix CVE-2020-7608?

Upgrade: yargs-parser to 13.1.2 or later, yargs-parser to 15.0.1 or later, yargs-parser to 5.0.1 or later, yargs-parser to 18.1.1 or later.

Summary

yargs-parser Vulnerable to Prototype Pollution

Affected versions of yargs-parser are vulnerable to prototype pollution. Arguments are not properly sanitized, allowing an attacker to modify the prototype of Object, causing the addition or modification of an existing property that will exist on all objects.
Parsing the argument --foo.__proto__.bar baz' adds a bar property with value baz to all objects. This is only exploitable if attackers have control over the arguments being passed to yargs-parser.

Impact

CVE-2020-7608 has a CVSS score of 5.3 (Medium). The vector is requires local access, low privileges required, and no user interaction. A CVSS score reflects the worst-case severity of the vulnerability, not your specific exposure. Whether this affects your application depends on whether the vulnerable code is present and reachable in your environment. A fixed version is available (13.1.2, 15.0.1, 5.0.1, 18.1.1); upgrading removes the vulnerable code path.

Affected versions

yargs-parser (>= 6.0.0, < 13.1.2) yargs-parser (>= 14.0.0, < 15.0.1) yargs-parser (<= 5.0.0) yargs-parser (>= 16.0.0, < 18.1.1)

Security releases

yargs-parser → 13.1.2 (npm) yargs-parser → 15.0.1 (npm) yargs-parser → 5.0.1 (npm) yargs-parser → 18.1.1 (npm)

Kodem intelligence

Severity tells you how bad this could be in the worst case. It does not tell you whether you are exposed. Exploitability and impact are functions of runtime truth: whether the vulnerable code is present, reachable, and actually executes in your application. A vulnerable package can sit in your dependency tree and never run.

Kodem, an Intelligent Application Security platform, uses runtime intelligence to reveal which vulnerabilities actually execute in production, so teams prioritize the ones that genuinely matter. Kodem's runtime-powered SCA identifies whether this CVE is reachable in your applications.

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Remediation advice

Upgrade to versions 13.1.2, 15.0.1, 18.1.1 or later.

Frequently Asked Questions

What is CVE-2020-7608? CVE-2020-7608 is a medium-severity security vulnerability in yargs-parser (npm), affecting versions >= 6.0.0, < 13.1.2. It is fixed in 13.1.2, 15.0.1, 5.0.1, 18.1.1.
How severe is CVE-2020-7608? CVE-2020-7608 has a CVSS score of 5.3 (Medium). This score reflects the worst-case severity of the vulnerability, not your specific exposure. Whether it represents real risk in your environment depends on whether the vulnerable code is present and reachable.
Which versions of yargs-parser are affected by CVE-2020-7608? yargs-parser (npm) versions >= 6.0.0, < 13.1.2 is affected.
Is there a fix for CVE-2020-7608? Yes. CVE-2020-7608 is fixed in 13.1.2, 15.0.1, 5.0.1, 18.1.1. Upgrade to this version or later.
Is CVE-2020-7608 exploitable, and should I be worried? Whether CVE-2020-7608 is exploitable in your environment depends on whether the vulnerable code is present and reachable. A CVSS score is a worst-case rating; it does not account for your specific deployment, configuration, or usage patterns. Kodem, an Intelligent Application Security platform, uses runtime intelligence to show which vulnerabilities actually execute in production, so you can focus on the ones that represent real risk. Get a demo
What actually determines whether CVE-2020-7608 is exploitable, and how bad it is? Exploitability and impact are not fixed properties of a CVE. They depend on runtime truth: whether the vulnerable code is present, reachable, and actually executes in your application. A high CVSS score on a dependency that never runs is not the same as real risk. Kodem, an Intelligent Application Security platform, uses runtime intelligence to reveal which vulnerabilities actually execute in production, so teams prioritize the ones that genuinely matter.
How do I fix CVE-2020-7608?
- Upgrade yargs-parser to 13.1.2 or later
- Upgrade yargs-parser to 15.0.1 or later
- Upgrade yargs-parser to 5.0.1 or later
- Upgrade yargs-parser to 18.1.1 or later