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CVE Record

CVE-2017-20004: In the standard library in Rust before 1.19.0, there is a synchronization problem in the MutexGuard object.

In the standard library in Rust before 1.19.0, there is a synchronization problem in the MutexGuard object. MutexGuards can be used across threads with any types, allowing for memory safety issues through race conditions.

UnknownCVSS not scoredNot KEV-listedUpdated
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Glexia's TakeAutomated analysisunknown

Security readout for executives and security teams

Plain-English summary

Rust versions before 1.19.0 had a standard-library MutexGuard synchronization flaw. In affected builds, code that should have enforced safe shared access could allow race-condition memory safety problems. Business impact depends on whether production software was built with this old Rust toolchain and uses the affected concurrency pattern.

Executive priority

Treat this as a legacy-toolchain risk requiring inventory rather than an emergency response. If no production systems were built with Rust before 1.19.0, priority is low. If legacy Rust services remain, schedule rebuild and validation work.

Technical view

The CVE describes a Rust standard library issue before 1.19.0 where MutexGuard could be used across threads with arbitrary types, allowing memory-safety issues through race conditions. The provided record has no CVSS, CWE, CPE, or product inventory beyond Rust standard library context.

Likely exposure

Exposure is most likely in legacy binaries or services built with Rust before 1.19.0. Modern Rust toolchains should not be assumed affected from the supplied evidence. Asset owners need build provenance, compiler version records, or rebuild history to confirm exposure.

Exploitation context

The bundle does not show active exploitation, and KEV is false. The evidence supports a concurrency soundness issue, not a default remotely exploitable condition. Practical risk depends on reachable code paths that misuse MutexGuard across threads in affected builds.

Researcher notes

Key evidence gaps are severity scoring, CPEs, affected downstream products, and exploit observations. Focus analysis on compiler provenance and code paths involving MutexGuard movement across threads. Avoid inferring exposure from the presence of Rust dependencies alone.

Mitigation direction

  • Identify production artifacts built with Rust before 1.19.0.
  • Rebuild affected software with Rust 1.19.0 or later, preferably a supported current release.
  • Review Rust issue 41622 and PR 41624 for project-specific guidance.
  • Prioritize internet-facing or safety-critical services compiled with legacy Rust.
  • Document affected build pipelines and retirement dates for old toolchains.

Validation and detection

  • Inventory rustc versions used for each deployed binary or container image.
  • Confirm suspect artifacts were rebuilt after moving beyond Rust 1.19.0.
  • Review concurrency-heavy code for MutexGuard use crossing thread boundaries.
  • Check release notes or build metadata for compiler provenance evidence.
  • Record compensating controls when rebuild status cannot be proven.
Prepared
Confidence
medium
Sources
4

Public sources used

Generated from the cited source records. This long-tail analysis has not been individually reviewed by a named human.

Potential ATT&CK relevance

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Vulnerability profileCVE Program record
Severity
Unknown
CVSS
Not scored
Known Exploited
No
Published
Official CVE source material

CNA and ADP enrichment extracted from CVE v5

These fields come from the CVE record and ADP containers, not from Glexia's Take. They preserve time-varying source decisions such as CISA SSVC, KEV status, CVSS metrics, and provider references.

0CVSS vectors
0Timeline events
0ADP providers
3Source links

CVSS and timeline data

No CVSS vectors or timeline events were available in the normalized CVE source material.

Source materials

Affected products

Products and packages named in the record

VendorProductVersion / packageStatus
n/an/an/aListed
Weakness

CWE details

No CWE listed

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