CVE-2020-15707

GRUB2 contained integer overflows when handling the initrd command, leading to a heap-based buffer overflow.

MEDIUM
6.4
CVSS Score
Published: July 29, 2020 at 05:45 PM UTC
Updated: June 17, 2026 at 02:57 AM UTC
16 products affected across 9 vendorsDebian LinuxWindows Server 2016Windows Server 2019

Using grub2 in Ubuntu by Ubuntu?

Get instant alerts when new vulnerabilities affect grub2 in Ubuntu - before attackers find them.

Real-time alertsTrack your software stackFree plan available
Severity
MEDIUM6.4
Exploit prediction
EPSS 2%

Description

Integer overflows were discovered in the functions grub_cmd_initrd and grub_initrd_init in the efilinux component of GRUB2, as shipped in Debian, Red Hat, and Ubuntu (the functionality is not included in GRUB2 upstream), leading to a heap-based buffer overflow. These could be triggered by an extremely large number of arguments to the initrd command on 32-bit architectures, or a crafted filesystem with very large files on any architecture. An attacker could use this to execute arbitrary code and bypass UEFI Secure Boot restrictions. This issue affects GRUB2 version 2.04 and prior versions.

Affected

Our own answer: ranges merged, affected separated from platform-only, with confidence and review flags.

References (17)

Vendor Advisoryx_refsource_SUSEMailing ListThird Party Advisory
http://lists.opensuse.org/opensuse-security-announce/2020-08/msg00016.html
Vendor Advisoryx_refsource_SUSEMailing ListThird Party Advisory
http://lists.opensuse.org/opensuse-security-announce/2020-08/msg00017.html
Vendor Advisoryx_refsource_UBUNTUThird Party Advisory
http://ubuntu.com/security/notices/USN-4432-1
Mailing Listx_refsource_MLISTThird Party Advisory
http://www.openwall.com/lists/oss-security/2020/07/29/3
Vendor Advisoryx_refsource_REDHATThird Party Advisory
https://access.redhat.com/security/vulnerabilities/grub2bootloader
x_refsource_CONFIRMPatchThird Party AdvisoryVendor Advisory
https://portal.msrc.microsoft.com/en-US/security-guidance/advisory/ADV200011
Vendor Advisoryx_refsource_GENTOOThird Party Advisory
https://security.gentoo.org/glsa/202104-05

CVSS

Attack Vector
LOCAL
Complexity
HIGH
Privileges
HIGH
User Interaction
NONE
Scope
UNCHANGED
Confidentiality
HIGH
Integrity
HIGH
Availability
HIGH
Vector?

Quick Info

StatusMODIFIED
CWE
CWE-362CWE-190

Get alerted

Stop reading CVE feeds looking for your own stack

Track the products you run and VulnTracker tells you when a new CVE affects them — with what is known about fixing it, and nothing about the rest.

Free plan, no card