CVE-2020-36198Public exploit

Admin command execution via unsanitized TAR filename

Published May 13, 2021 · Updated Sep 17, 2024

Command injection in QNAP Malware Remover before 4.6.1.0 allows remote attackers to execute arbitrary commands during a malware scan. The is_tarball_match function passes each extracted TAR filename without shell escaping into a strings-and-grep command opened by os.popen. The TAR must reach /tmp/config while a scan traverses that temporary filesystem; successful commands run as the admin user, and pre-authentication requires a separate file-upload flaw.

CVSS severity6.7
Medium
EPSS probability1.12%
Next 30 days · Sep 16, 2026
Known exploitationUnconfirmed
Based on sourced intelligence
Hinoki checkNot available
Coverage for this vulnerability

See if you're affected

Explore vulnerability checks for your environment with Hinoki.

Book a demo

Summary

What happened

Command injection in QNAP Malware Remover before 4.6.1.0 allows remote attackers to execute arbitrary commands during a malware scan. The is_tarball_match function passes each extracted TAR filename without shell escaping into a strings-and-grep command opened by os.popen. The TAR must reach /tmp/config while a scan traverses that temporary filesystem; successful commands run as the admin user, and pre-authentication requires a separate file-upload flaw.

The record

CVE
CVE-2020-36198
Published
May 13, 2021
Updated
Sep 17, 2024
Vendor
Linn Products Limited
Product
Malware Remover
Classifications
CWE-78, CWE-77, T1059.004
Attack vector
local
Privileges
admin

Timeline

How it unfolded

  1. May 13, 2021CVE publishedPublication date reported by the CVE source.
  2. Sep 17, 2024Record updatedLatest update available in the CVE record.

Exploitability

Present is not the same as exploitable

Compare your product and version with the public record. A matching version still requires validation against your environment.

Is a vulnerable build present?

Compare these published version ranges with your installed build and any vendor patches.

  1. Affected versionversion=unspecified <4.6.1.0

What conditions does exploitation require?

Attack vectorlocal
Required privilegesadmin

What is affected?

Linn Products Limited · Malware Removerversion=unspecified <4.6.1.0

Published CVSS scores

7.2NIST NVDAV:L/AC:L/Au:N/C:C/I:C/A:C
6.7QNAP Systems, Inc.CVSS:3.1/AV:L/AC:L/PR:H/UI:N/S:U/C:H/I:H/A:H

CVSS describes severity. EPSS estimates exploitation probability.

Attacks

What attackers are doing with it

Daily unique IPs observed by Shadowserver honeypots for known exploited vulnerabilities (KEVs). Missing observations do not establish an absence of attacks.

Daily unique IPsNo honeypot observations are available for this CVE in the selected window.

No observations available

Sep 10, 2026Sep 16, 2026
Latest reporting daySep 16, 2026
Latest daily unique IPsUnavailable
Prior 30-day averageUnavailable
SourceShadowserver honeypots (KEV)
Vectorlocal
Privilegesadmin
Known exploitationUnconfirmed
Public exploitPublished

Weakness, pattern, technique

CWE-78Improper Neutralization of Special Elements used in an OS Command ('OS Command Injection')
CWE-77Improper Neutralization of Special Elements used in a Command ('Command Injection')
T1059.004Command and Scripting Interpreter: Unix Shell

Public exploit references

Labels summarize the accepted research assessment. They do not indicate a test against your environment.

Technologies

Your stack

See the directory against your own environment.

Your stack

Check the software in your environment

Book a demo to see how Hinoki identifies affected software and validates exploitability in your environment.

Book a demo