VulnTideExploited vulnerabilities, by vendor. Data as of 28 Oct 2026.
Known exploitedIn CISA's KEV catalog since 3 November 2021Ransomware use: unknown
SaltStack Salt

CVE-2020-16846: SaltStack Salt Shell Injection Vulnerability

Is it exploited?

Yes. CISA added it to the Known Exploited Vulnerabilities catalog on 3 Nov 2021, 362 days after the CVE record was published.

How likely is exploitation in the next 30 days?
99.6%

EPSS score, percentile 99.9 of all scored records

How severe?
9.8 Critical

CVSS v3.1 base score, from CISA's enrichment of the record

What should I do?

CISA deadline 3 May 2022. Apply updates per vendor instructions.

Advisories and patches (4)

Which versions are affected?

Not stated. The CVE record gives vendor and product as “n/a” and the version as “unspecified”.

Source: CISA Known Exploited Vulnerabilities (KEV) catalog, 2026.10.28, as of 28 Oct 2026; FIRST Exploit Prediction Scoring System (EPSS), v2026.06.15, as of 28 Oct 2026; CVE List V5 (CVE Program), cve_2026-10-28_0000Z, as of 28 Oct 2026. About the data.

What to do

Required action, set by CISA

Apply updates per vendor instructions.

CISA due date for this action: 3 May 2022.

Advisories and patches

Linked from CISA's catalog entry

Affected products and versions

The CVE record does not name affected products or versions: vendor and product are “n/a” and the version is “unspecified”.

Source: CVE List V5 (CVE Program), cve_2026-10-28_0000Z, as of 28 Oct 2026. About the data.

About this vulnerability

SaltStack Salt allows an unauthenticated user with network access to the Salt API to use shell injections to run code on the Salt API using the SSH client. This vulnerability affects any users running the Salt API.

Summary: CISA's KEV catalog, as of 28 Oct 2026.

  • CISA added CVE-2020-16846 to its Known Exploited Vulnerabilities (KEV) catalog on 3 Nov 2021.
  • CISA's ransomware flag for this entry is "Unknown": no evidence of ransomware use in the catalog, which is not proof of none.
  • The due date CISA sets for the required action is 3 May 2022.
  • The CVE record was published on 6 Nov 2020, 362 days before it was added to KEV.
  • The CVE record carries a CVSS v3.1 base score of 9.8 (Critical), taken from CISA's enrichment of the record.
  • FIRST's EPSS model puts the probability of exploitation in the next 30 days at 99.6% (percentile 99.9), as of 28 Oct 2026.
  • CISA's SSVC assessment in the CVE record: exploitation active, automatable yes, technical impact total.

Source: CISA Known Exploited Vulnerabilities (KEV) catalog, 2026.10.28, as of 28 Oct 2026; CVE List V5 (CVE Program), cve_2026-10-28_0000Z, as of 28 Oct 2026; FIRST Exploit Prediction Scoring System (EPSS), v2026.06.15, as of 28 Oct 2026. About the data.

Description

An issue was discovered in SaltStack Salt through 3002. Sending crafted web requests to the Salt API, with the SSH client enabled, can result in shell injection.

Source: CVE List V5 (CVE Program), cve_2026-10-28_0000Z, as of 28 Oct 2026. About the data.

Weakness

  • CWE-78: Improper Neutralization of Special Elements used in an OS Command ('OS Command Injection')

CWE and CAPEC are maintained by MITRE; the entries are those named in the CVE record and the KEV entry.

Timeline

DateEvent
6 Nov 2020CVE record published
3 Nov 2021Added to CISA KEV
3 May 2022CISA due date for the required action
21 Oct 2025CVE record last updated

References

2 more in the CVE record.

More exploited SaltStack vulnerabilities

  • CVE-2020-11651: SaltStack Salt Authentication Bypass Vulnerability (added 3 Nov 2021)
  • CVE-2020-11652: SaltStack Salt Path Traversal Vulnerability (added 3 Nov 2021)