CVE-2020-7941: Privilege Escalation in plone.app.contenttypes
Summary
CVE-2020-7941: A privilege escalation issue in plone.app.contenttypes in Plone 4.3 through 5.2.1 allows users to PUT (overwrite) some content without needing write permission. Affects plone versions >= 4.3, < 5.2.2. Fixed in 5.2.2. How to fix ↓
Also tracked for
- plone-app-contenttypes · PyPI
The same CVE-2020-7941 is tracked separately for each ecosystem and vendor. Its fix information is the same; the package and affected versions differ.
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Background
Plone is an open-source content management system built on top of the Zope application server. It provides a robust and flexible platform for creating and managing websites. plone.app.contenttypes is a package in Plone that provides a set of content types, such as documents, images, and folders, for organizing and presenting content. This vulnerability affects Plone versions 4.3 through 5.2.1.
Vulnerability Detail
The vulnerability allows users to overwrite content without requiring write permission. This privilege escalation issue exists in the plone.app.contenttypes package. Attackers with lower privileges can exploit this vulnerability to modify content that they should not have access to. This can lead to unauthorized changes, data manipulation, and potential information disclosure.
How To Fix
Latest published version: 6.2.2 as of 23 Oct 2026
pip install --upgrade "plone==6.2.2"Upgrading to it may include breaking changes; the version below is the minimum fixed release for this vulnerability.
If you need the minimum change
5.2.2
This is the first release that contains the fix.
pip install --upgrade "plone==5.2.2"Tip — Not sure which version your app runs? Vulert can match this fix to it. Scan free →
Workaround
There is no known workaround for this vulnerability. It is essential to apply the official fix by upgrading to Plone 5.2.2 or later.
Conclusion
The privilege escalation vulnerability in plone.app.contenttypes can allow unauthorized users to overwrite content without proper permissions. To mitigate this risk, it is recommended to upgrade to Plone 5.2.2 or later. For further assistance and support in vulnerability remediation, please contact DevNack.com.
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FAQ
This vulnerability allows users to overwrite content without proper permissions, potentially leading to unauthorized changes, data manipulation, and information disclosure.
Plone versions 4.3 through 5.2.1 are affected by this vulnerability. Users of these versions should upgrade to Plone 5.2.2 or later to mitigate the risk.
There are no known public exploits for this vulnerability at the time of this advisory. However, it is crucial to apply the fix promptly to prevent any potential exploitation.
No, this vulnerability requires authenticated access to the Plone instance. It cannot be exploited remotely without valid credentials.
For more information about this vulnerability, you can refer to the official advisory at the provided source link.
References
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