Security readout for executives and security teams
Plain-English summary
InfluxDB versions before 1.7.6 could incorrectly accept authentication involving a JWT shared secret that was empty. In practical terms, a database that operators believed was protected could be accessible without valid credentials under affected conditions.
Executive priority
Treat this as a high-priority remediation if InfluxDB is used for operational metrics, monitoring, or customer-adjacent data. The business risk is unauthorized access to time-series data that teams may assume is authenticated.
Technical view
The CVE describes an authentication bypass in InfluxDB's HTTP authentication path, specifically the authenticate function in services/httpd/handler.go. The issue is tied to JWT handling when the SharedSecret value is empty. The provided sources identify versions before 1.7.6 as affected and point to the 1.7.6 changeset and Debian security updates.
Likely exposure
Exposure is most likely where InfluxDB before 1.7.6 is deployed, especially if its HTTP API is reachable from users, services, VPNs, or the internet. Debian installations may also be affected until the referenced Debian security updates are applied.
Exploitation context
The source bundle does not show CISA KEV listing or confirmed active exploitation. Public references include a GitHub issue, code changes, and Debian advisories, but no cited source here confirms exploitation in the wild.
Researcher notes
Evidence is concise but consistent: CVE text, upstream issue, upstream 1.7.6 comparison, a specific commit, and Debian advisories all identify an authentication bypass. The bundle lacks CVSS, CWE, detailed affected CPEs, and exploitation confirmation.
Mitigation direction
- Upgrade InfluxDB to 1.7.6 or a later fixed release.
- Apply Debian security updates from DLA-2501-1 or DSA-4823 where applicable.
- Check vendor guidance before relying on configuration-only mitigation.
- Restrict InfluxDB HTTP API access to trusted networks and required clients.
- Review authentication and JWT shared secret configuration for unsafe empty values.
Validation and detection
- Inventory all InfluxDB deployments and record exact versions.
- Confirm no reachable deployment is running a version before 1.7.6.
- For Debian systems, verify installed packages include the referenced security fixes.
- Confirm the HTTP API still requires expected authentication after remediation.
- Review access logs for unexpected database requests during the vulnerable period.
Public sources used
Generated from the cited source records. This long-tail analysis has not been individually reviewed by a named human.
Conservative CVE-to-ATT&CK context
These mappings and lookup hints may be relevant to the vulnerability behavior, CWE, affected product, or exposure path. Glexia-inferred context is not an official MITRE, ATT&CK, CWE, or CVE Program mapping.
ATT&CK lookup starting points
Use these exact CWE pages and searches to review the Glexia ATT&CK library from this CVE's weakness and description context.
Credential and access behavior lookup
The CVE wording references authentication or credential exposure, so valid-account and credential-access review may help. This is a Glexia inferred lookup path, not an official MITRE, ATT&CK, or CVE Program mapping.
Open ATT&CK lookupCVE-2019-20933 mapping review
Open the CVE-to-ATT&CK bridge for reviewed, inferred, or future official mappings tied to this CVE.
Open ATT&CK lookup- Severity
- Unknown
- CVSS
- Not scored
- Known Exploited
- No
- Published
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.
CVSS and timeline data
No CVSS vectors or timeline events were available in the normalized CVE source material.
Source materials
- CVE List V5 sourceCVE List V5
- https://github.com/influxdata/influxdb/issues/12927CVE reference · x_refsource_MISC
- https://github.com/influxdata/influxdb/compare/v1.7.5...v1.7.6CVE reference · x_refsource_MISC
- https://github.com/influxdata/influxdb/commit/761b557315ff9c1642cf3b0e5797cd3d983a24c0CVE reference · x_refsource_MISC
- [debian-lts-announce] 20201220 [SECURITY] [DLA 2501-1] influxdb security updateCVE reference · mailing-list, x_refsource_MLIST
- DSA-4823CVE reference · vendor-advisory, x_refsource_DEBIAN
Products and packages named in the record
CWE details
CWE links open Glexia weakness intelligence pages with official CWE context, developer remediation guidance, and related CVE mappings.