CVE-2020-14172
📋 TL;DR
This vulnerability allows remote attackers to execute arbitrary code on Atlassian Jira Server and Data Center instances through insecure deserialization in velocity templates. Attackers can achieve remote code execution if they can exploit a server-side template injection vulnerability. Organizations running affected versions of Jira Server or Data Center are at risk.
💻 Affected Systems
- Atlassian Jira Server
- Atlassian Jira Data Center
📦 What is this software?
Jira by Atlassian
Jira by Atlassian
Jira by Atlassian
⚠️ Risk & Real-World Impact
Worst Case
Full system compromise with attacker gaining complete control over the Jira instance, potentially leading to data theft, lateral movement, and persistent backdoor installation.
Likely Case
Remote code execution leading to data exfiltration, privilege escalation, and installation of malware or cryptocurrency miners.
If Mitigated
Limited impact with proper network segmentation, minimal privileges, and monitoring in place, though RCE would still be possible.
🎯 Exploit Status
Exploitation requires server-side template injection vulnerability as a prerequisite. Once template injection is achieved, RCE via deserialization is straightforward.
🛠️ Fix & Mitigation
✅ Official Fix
Patch Version: 7.13.0, 8.5.0, or 8.8.1 and later
Vendor Advisory: https://jira.atlassian.com/browse/JRASERVER-70940
Restart Required: Yes
Instructions:
1. Download the appropriate patched version from Atlassian's website. 2. Backup your Jira instance and database. 3. Stop the Jira service. 4. Install the update following Atlassian's upgrade guide. 5. Restart the Jira service. 6. Verify the update was successful.
🔧 Temporary Workarounds
Network Segmentation
allRestrict network access to Jira instances to only trusted IP addresses and networks.
Use firewall rules to limit inbound connections to Jira ports (typically 8080, 8443)
Disable Velocity Template Features
allIf not required, disable velocity template functionality through configuration.
Modify velocity.properties to restrict template loading
🧯 If You Can't Patch
- Implement strict network access controls to limit who can access the Jira instance
- Enable detailed logging and monitoring for suspicious template-related activities
🔍 How to Verify
Check if Vulnerable:
Check Jira version in Administration → System → System Info, or run: java -jar atlassian-jira/WEB-INF/lib/jira-core-*.jar --versionCheck Version:
java -jar atlassian-jira/WEB-INF/lib/jira-core-*.jar --versionVerify Fix Applied:
Verify version is 7.13.0+, 8.5.0+, or 8.8.1+ using the same methods📡 Detection & Monitoring
Log Indicators:
- Unusual velocity template compilation errors
- Suspicious class loading in logs
- Unexpected Java deserialization attempts
Network Indicators:
- Unusual outbound connections from Jira server
- HTTP requests with velocity template injection patterns
SIEM Query:
source="jira.log" AND ("velocity" OR "template" OR "deserialization") AND (error OR exception OR warning)