CVE-2020-28949
KEVPEAR Archive_Tar Deserialization of Untrusted Data Vulnerability
Description
PEAR Archive_Tar allows an unserialization attack because phar: is blocked but PHAR: is not blocked. PEAR stands for PHP Extension and Application Repository and it is an open-source framework and distribution system for reusable PHP components with known usage in third-party products such as Drupal Core and Red Hat Linux.
Archive_Tar through 1.4.10 has :// filename sanitization only to address phar attacks, and thus any other stream-wrapper attack (such as file:// to overwrite files) can still succeed.
CVSS 3.1 vector
CVSS:3.1/AV:L/AC:L/PR:N/UI:R/S:U/C:H/I:H/A:HPublishedNov 19, 2020
Last modifiedJun 17, 2026
Added to KEVAug 25, 2022
Remediation dueSep 15, 2022
References
- packetstormsecurity.com/files/161095/PEAR-Archive_Tar-Arbitrary-File-Write.htmlExploitThird Party Advisory
- github.com/pear/Archive_Tar/issues/33ExploitIssue Tracking
- lists.debian.org/debian-lts-announce/2020/11/msg00045.htmlMailing ListThird Party Advisory
- lists.fedoraproject.org/archives/list/package-announce%40lists.fedoraproject.org/message/42GPGVVFTLJYAKRI75IVB5R45NYQGEUR/Mailing ListThird Party Advisory
- lists.fedoraproject.org/archives/list/package-announce%40lists.fedoraproject.org/message/4V35LBRM6HBCXBVCITKQ4UEBTXO2EG7B/Mailing ListThird Party Advisory
- lists.fedoraproject.org/archives/list/package-announce%40lists.fedoraproject.org/message/5KSFM672XW3X6BR7TVKRD63SLZGKK437/Mailing ListThird Party Advisory
- lists.fedoraproject.org/archives/list/package-announce%40lists.fedoraproject.org/message/KWM4CTMEGAC4I2CHYNJVSROY4CVXVEUT/Mailing ListThird Party Advisory
- lists.fedoraproject.org/archives/list/package-announce%40lists.fedoraproject.org/message/NBYZSHYTIOBK6V7C4N7TP6KIKCRKLVWP/Mailing ListThird Party Advisory
- lists.fedoraproject.org/archives/list/package-announce%40lists.fedoraproject.org/message/VJQQYDAOWHD6RDITDRPHFW7WY6BS3V5N/Mailing ListThird Party Advisory
- security.gentoo.org/glsa/202101-23Third Party Advisory
- debian.org/security/2020/dsa-4817Mailing ListThird Party Advisory
- drupal.org/sa-core-2020-013Third Party Advisory
0 recent articles mention this CVE
77
Risk assessment · High
Actively exploited. Patch immediately.
- Exploitation
- Confirmed in the wild (CISA KEV)
- Federal remediation deadline
- Overdue by 1502 days
- CVSS
- 7.8 HIGH
- EPSS (30-day exploit probability)
- 84.6% · top 1% of all CVEs
- Weakness
- NVD-CWE-noinfo
Recommended actions
- 1.Apply updates per vendor instructions.
- 2.Treat as emergency change: patch or isolate internet-facing instances first.
- 3.Hunt for compromise: review logs for the disclosure window, not just from the patch date.
Assessment is derived automatically from the live signals above; verify against your own asset inventory.