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NTAP-20210115-0003 — December 2020 GNU Binutils Vulnerabilities in NetApp Products
Published 2021-01-15 · Updated 2024-04-25 · Status: Final · Exploitation: Public · Severity: MEDIUM 5.5 · ONTAP affected: Yes
Product family: Cloud Backup / AltaVault / SteelStore · ONTAP | ONTAP-relevant | highest CVSS: 5.5
CVEs in this advisory
- CVE-2020-16590 — MEDIUM · CVSS 5.5 · site index
- CVE-2020-16591 — MEDIUM · CVSS 5.5 · site index
- CVE-2020-16592 — MEDIUM · CVSS 5.5 · site index
- CVE-2020-16598 · site index
What the CVE records say
CVE-2020-16590 — A double free vulnerability exists in the Binary File Descriptor (BFD) (aka libbrd) in GNU Binutils 2.35 in the process_symbol_table, as demonstrated in readelf, via a crafted file.
CVE-2020-16591 — A Denial of Service vulnerability exists in the Binary File Descriptor (BFD) in GNU Binutils 2.35 due to an invalid read in process_symbol_table, as demonstrated in readeif.
CVE-2020-16592 — A use after free issue exists in the Binary File Descriptor (BFD) library (aka libbfd) in GNU Binutils 2.34 in bfd_hash_lookup, as demonstrated in nm-new, that can cause a denial of service via a crafted file.
CVE-2020-16598 — Rejected reason: DO NOT USE THIS CANDIDATE NUMBER. ConsultIDs: none. Reason: This candidate was withdrawn by its CNA. Further investigation showed that it was not a security issue. Notes: none
Impact
Successful exploitation of these vulnerabilities could lead to Denial of Service (DoS).
Affected products
- NetApp Cloud Backup OST Plug-in (formerly AltaVault OST Plug-in)
- ONTAP Select Deploy administration utility
Official fixes
- ONTAP Select Deploy administration utility — vendor fix ↗
What to do
- Check the affected products listed above against the official advisory's affected-versions table — that is where the exact ONTAP 9 release, ONTAP tool, or management product versions are named.
- If affected and a fixed release exists, plan the upgrade — see the ONTAP upgrade runbook.
- If exploitation is listed as "active", treat remediation as urgent and review exposure (management LIFs, ONTAP S3, SnapMirror endpoints).
- Harden in parallel: security hardening baseline and ransomware protection on ONTAP.
Related reading
- Common ONTAP problems (FAQ) — plain-language symptoms and fixes
- ONTAP security hardening — baseline lockdown guidance
- Ransomware protection on ONTAP — SnapLock, SnapMirror vaulting, Anomaly Detection
- ONTAP error messages index — EMS/WAFL/NFS/SnapMirror messages
- Every NetApp advisory published in 2021