CVE-2020-36193: PEAR Archive_Tar Improper Link Resolution Vulnerability
- Is it exploited?
Yes. CISA added it to the Known Exploited Vulnerabilities catalog on 25 Aug 2022, 584 days after the CVE record was published.
- How likely is exploitation in the next 30 days?
- 70.6%
EPSS score, percentile 99.4 of all scored records
- How severe?
- 7.5 High
CVSS v3.1 base score, from CISA's enrichment of the record
- What should I do?
CISA deadline 15 Sep 2022. Apply updates per vendor instructions.
- 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: 15 September 2022.
Advisories and patches
- GLSA-202101-23
- FEDORA-2021-02996612f6
- FEDORA-2021-dc7de65eed
- DSA-4894
- FEDORA-2021-8093e197f4
- FEDORA-2021-0c013f520c
Linked from CISA's catalog entry
- https://github.com/pear/Archive_Tar/commit/cde460582ff389404b5b3ccb59374e9b389de916
- https://www.drupal.org/sa-core-2021-001
- https://access.redhat.com/security/cve/cve-2020-36193
- https://nvd.nist.gov/vuln/detail/CVE-2020-36193
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
PEAR Archive_Tar Tar.php allows write operations with directory traversal due to inadequate checking of symbolic links. PEAR stands for PHP Extension and Application Repository and it is an open-source framework and distribution system for reusable PHP components with known usage in third-party products such as Drupal Core and Red Hat Linux.
Summary: CISA's KEV catalog, as of 28 Oct 2026.
- CISA added CVE-2020-36193 to its Known Exploited Vulnerabilities (KEV) catalog on 25 Aug 2022.
- 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 15 Sep 2022.
- The CVE record was published on 18 Jan 2021, 584 days before it was added to KEV.
- The CVE record carries a CVSS v3.1 base score of 7.5 (High), taken from CISA's enrichment of the record.
- FIRST's EPSS model puts the probability of exploitation in the next 30 days at 70.6% (percentile 99.4), as of 28 Oct 2026.
- CISA's SSVC assessment in the CVE record: exploitation active, automatable yes, technical impact partial.
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
Tar.php in Archive_Tar through 1.4.11 allows write operations with Directory Traversal due to inadequate checking of symbolic links, a related issue to CVE-2020-28948.
Source: CVE List V5 (CVE Program), cve_2026-10-28_0000Z, as of 28 Oct 2026. About the data.
Weakness
CWE and CAPEC are maintained by MITRE; the entries are those named in the CVE record and the KEV entry.
Timeline
| Date | Event |
|---|---|
| 18 Jan 2021 | CVE record published |
| 25 Aug 2022 | Added to CISA KEV |
| 15 Sep 2022 | CISA due date for the required action |
| 21 Oct 2025 | CVE record last updated |
References
- github.com
- drupal.org
- [debian-lts-announce] 20210121 [SECURITY] [DLA-2530-1] drupal7 security update
- [debian-lts-announce] 20210408 [SECURITY] [DLA 2621-1] php-pear security update
More exploited PEAR vulnerabilities
- CVE-2020-28949: PEAR Archive_Tar Deserialization of Untrusted Data Vulnerability