Security readout for executives and security teams
Plain-English summary
CVE-2020-7929 lets an authorized MongoDB query user make affected servers unavailable with a specially crafted regex query. It is not a data theft issue in the cited record, but it can disrupt applications relying on vulnerable MongoDB 3.6 or 4.0 deployments.
Executive priority
Treat this as a near-term reliability risk for any remaining MongoDB 3.6 or 4.0 systems. Prioritize patching or upgrade planning where critical applications depend on those databases, especially where many users or services can run queries.
Technical view
MongoDB Server 3.6 before 3.6.21 and 4.0 before 4.0.20 are affected. The CVSS 3.1 vector is network-accessible, low complexity, low privileges, no user interaction, unchanged scope, and high availability impact only. The weakness is categorized as CWE-185.
Likely exposure
Exposure is most likely in legacy MongoDB Server 3.6 or 4.0 environments where users or applications can submit database queries. Systems with broader query access have higher operational risk, but the cited record requires an authorized query user.
Exploitation context
The provided sources do not show CISA KEV listing or active exploitation. Abuse requires valid authorization to perform database queries. The expected impact is denial of service, not confidentiality or integrity compromise, based on the CVE data.
Researcher notes
The source bundle provides affected version boundaries and CVSS details, but no exploit indicators, proof-of-concept status, or operational workaround beyond moving past the vulnerable versions. Avoid assuming newer branches are affected unless vendor data says so.
Mitigation direction
- Upgrade MongoDB Server 3.6 deployments to 3.6.21 or later.
- Upgrade MongoDB Server 4.0 deployments to 4.0.20 or later.
- Check MongoDB guidance for supported upgrade paths before production changes.
- Review query permissions and remove unnecessary database query access.
- Monitor affected environments for unusual availability or resource degradation.
Validation and detection
- Inventory MongoDB Server versions across production and non-production environments.
- Flag MongoDB 3.6 versions below 3.6.21.
- Flag MongoDB 4.0 versions below 4.0.20.
- Identify users and applications authorized to submit database queries.
- Review monitoring for unexplained resource spikes or service degradation.
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.
CWE-185: Exact CWE lookup
Use the exact CWE identifier as the starting point before reviewing related ATT&CK behavior. Open the exact CWE lookup page first, then review the ATT&CK searches from that MITRE weakness context. This is a Glexia lookup hint, not an official ATT&CK mapping.
Open ATT&CK lookupDatabase behavior lookup
The CVE wording references database injection or access, so collection and exfiltration review may help. This is a Glexia inferred lookup path, not an official MITRE, ATT&CK, or CVE Program mapping.
Open ATT&CK lookupCVE-2020-7929 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
- Medium
- CVSS
- 6.5 (3.1)
- Known Exploited
- No
- Published
Vector: CVSS:3.1/AV:N/AC:L/PR:L/UI:N/S:U/C:N/I:N/A:H
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 vector scores
1 official scoreWe collect every scored CVSS vector available in the official CNA and ADP containers. When more than one version is present, the table keeps the source vectors side by side instead of collapsing them into the highest score.
CVSS:3.1/AV:N/AC:L/PR:L/UI:N/S:U/C:N/I:N/A:H2.83.6Primary CVE scoreVulnerability scoring details
Base CVSS 3.1 score
6.5MediumVector: CVSS:3.1/AV:N/AC:L/PR:L/UI:N/S:U/C:N/I:N/A:H
Source materials
- CVE List V5 sourceCVE List V5
- https://jira.mongodb.org/browse/SERVER-51083CVE reference · x_refsource_MISC
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.
Incorrect Regular Expression
Incorrect Regular Expression represents a recurring weakness pattern that can create exploitable paths when design, validation, or implementation controls are missing.