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CVE-2020-12271 — A SQL injection issue was found in SFOS 17.0, 17.1, 17.5, and 18.0 before 2020-04-25 on…

Key facts

CVE-2020-12271 is a Critical (9.8) vulnerability: A SQL injection issue was found in SFOS 17.0, 17.1, 17.5, and 18.0 before 2020-04-25 on…. This entry ships a detection-only PoC and a Docker test lab. It is on the CISA Known Exploited Vulnerabilities (KEV) catalog (added 2021-11-03), confirming active exploitation in the wild, and is linked to known ransomware campaigns.

Actively exploited — on the CISA KEV catalog

CVE-2020-12271 is listed on the CISA Known Exploited Vulnerabilities (KEV) catalog (added 2021-11-03), confirming exploitation in the wild. It is linked to known ransomware campaigns. Federal remediation deadline: 2022-05-03. Prioritise patching and deploy the detection and prevention rules below.
CVE CVE-2020-12271
Severity Critical (9.8)
CISA KEV Actively exploited (added 2021-11-03) · ransomware
Detection / prevention —
PoC poc.py
Source 2020/CVE-2020-12271/

Details

English | 한국어

Description

A SQL injection issue was found in SFOS 17.0, 17.1, 17.5, and 18.0 before 2020-04-25 on Sophos XG Firewall devices, as exploited in the wild in April 2020. This affected devices configured with either the administration (HTTPS) service or the User Portal exposed on the WAN zone. A successful attack may have caused remote code execution that exfiltrated usernames and hashed passwords for the local device admin(s), portal admins, and user accounts used for remote access (but not external Active Directory or LDAP passwords)

Vulnerability Details

Property Value
CVE ID CVE-2020-12271
Type SQLI
CVSS Score 9.8

Proof of Concept

Download

# Download PoC script
curl -O https://raw.githubusercontent.com/fankh/vulnerability-poc/main/2020/CVE-2020-12271/poc.py

Usage

# Run PoC against target
python3 poc.py --target <TARGET_URL>

# With authentication
python3 poc.py --target <TARGET_URL> --username <USER> --password <PASS>

⚠️ Warning: This PoC is for authorized security testing only. It uses detection-only techniques and does not exploit or damage target systems.

Test Lab

This repository includes a Docker-based test environment with both vulnerable and patched applications.

Quick Start

# Clone and navigate to CVE directory
cd CVE-2020-12271

# Start both applications
docker-compose up -d

# Run tests
./run-tests.sh    # Linux/Mac
./run-tests.ps1   # Windows PowerShell

Application Endpoints

Application URL Status
Vulnerable App http://localhost:8080 Shows vulnerability
Patched App http://localhost:8081 Demonstrates fix

Directory Structure

├── README.md           # English documentation
├── README_KO.md        # Korean documentation
├── poc.py              # PoC detection script
├── docker-compose.yml  # Container orchestration
├── run-tests.sh        # Linux/Mac test runner
├── run-tests.ps1       # Windows test runner
├── vulnerable-app/     # Vulnerable version
│   ├── app.py
│   ├── Dockerfile
│   └── requirements.txt
└── patched-app/        # Fixed version
    ├── app.py
    ├── Dockerfile
    └── requirements.txt

References

  • https://community.sophos.com/kb/en-us/135412
  • https://cwe.mitre.org/data/definitions/89.html
  • https://news.sophos.com/en-us/2020/04/26/asnarok/
  • https://community.sophos.com/kb/en-us/135412
  • https://cwe.mitre.org/data/definitions/89.html
  • https://news.sophos.com/en-us/2020/04/26/asnarok/
  • https://www.cisa.gov/known-exploited-vulnerabilities-catalog?field_cve=CVE-2020-12271

Generated by PoC Generator on 2026-07-01T14:02:53.78301888

Frequently asked questions

What is CVE-2020-12271?

CVE-2020-12271 is a Critical (9.8) vulnerability: A SQL injection issue was found in SFOS 17.0, 17.1, 17.5, and 18.0 before 2020-04-25 on…. This entry ships a detection-only PoC and a Docker test lab. It is on the CISA Known Exploited Vulnerabilities (KEV) catalog (added 2021-11-03), confirming active exploitation in the wild, and is linked to known ransomware campaigns.

How do I detect CVE-2020-12271?

Run the detection-only PoC included with this entry against your Docker test lab to confirm whether a target is affected; pair it with your own IDS logging.

How do I block or mitigate CVE-2020-12271?

Upgrade to a fixed version per the vendor advisory; the NVD record lists the affected versions. Use the included PoC to verify your remediation.

Is CVE-2020-12271 actively exploited?

Yes. CVE-2020-12271 is on the CISA Known Exploited Vulnerabilities (KEV) catalog, added 2021-11-03, which means it has been exploited in the wild. CISA also links it to known ransomware campaigns. CISA set a federal remediation deadline of 2022-05-03. Prioritise patching and deploy the detection and prevention rules above.

For authorized security testing and research only. See the full source and NVD record.