CVE-2020-27623
📋 TL;DR
JetBrains IdeaVim before version 0.58 could leak sensitive information in specific circumstances. This affects developers using the IdeaVim plugin in JetBrains IDEs. The vulnerability might expose data that should remain private within the development environment.
💻 Affected Systems
- JetBrains IdeaVim plugin
📦 What is this software?
Ideavim by Jetbrains
⚠️ Risk & Real-World Impact
Worst Case
Sensitive development data, credentials, or proprietary code could be exposed to unauthorized parties.
Likely Case
Limited information disclosure of IDE configuration or temporary data with minimal security impact.
If Mitigated
No impact if proper access controls and network segmentation are implemented.
🎯 Exploit Status
Limited circumstances required for exploitation; no known public exploits.
🛠️ Fix & Mitigation
✅ Official Fix
Patch Version: 0.58 or later
Vendor Advisory: https://blog.jetbrains.com/2020/11/16/jetbrains-security-bulletin-q3-2020/
Restart Required: Yes
Instructions:
1. Open JetBrains IDE. 2. Go to Settings/Preferences > Plugins. 3. Find IdeaVim plugin. 4. Update to version 0.58 or later. 5. Restart IDE.
🔧 Temporary Workarounds
Disable IdeaVim plugin
allTemporarily disable the vulnerable plugin until update can be applied
🧯 If You Can't Patch
- Restrict network access to development workstations
- Implement strict access controls and monitoring for development environments
🔍 How to Verify
Check if Vulnerable:
Check IdeaVim plugin version in IDE settings: Settings/Preferences > Plugins > IdeaVimCheck Version:
No command-line check; verify through IDE plugin interfaceVerify Fix Applied:
Verify IdeaVim plugin version is 0.58 or higher in plugin settings📡 Detection & Monitoring
Log Indicators:
- Unusual IDE plugin activity or crashes
Network Indicators:
- Unexpected data exfiltration from development workstations
SIEM Query:
Not applicable for this client-side vulnerability