CVE-2018-20436
8.1 · HIGHOverview
CVE-2018-20436 is a high-severity vulnerability affecting telegram telegram. It was published on December 24, 2018 and has a CVSS 3.0 base score of 8.1 (HIGH).
This vulnerability has a CVSS 3.0 base score of 8.1, rated HIGH. It can be exploited remotely over the network. No authentication or special privileges are required for exploitation.
Technical Description
The "secret chat" feature in Telegram 4.9.1 for Android has a "side channel" in which Telegram servers send GET requests for URLs typed while composing a chat message, before that chat message is sent. There are also GET requests to other URLs on the same web server. This also affects one or more other Telegram products, such as Telegram Web-version 0.7.0. In addition, it can be interpreted as an SSRF issue. NOTE: a third party has reported that potentially unwanted behavior is caused by misconfiguration of the "Secret chats > Preview links" setting
Remediation
Check the references section for vendor advisories and patches from telegram. Update telegram to the latest patched version. If immediate patching is not possible, review the CVSS vector to understand the attack surface and apply compensating controls such as network segmentation or access restrictions.
Affected Products
| Vendor | Product | Versions | Status |
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References
Frequently Asked Questions
What is CVE-2018-20436?
CVE-2018-20436 is a high-severity vulnerability affecting telegram telegram. It was published on December 24, 2018 and has a CVSS 3.0 base score of 8.1 (HIGH).
How severe is CVE-2018-20436?
This vulnerability has a CVSS 3.0 base score of 8.1, rated HIGH. It can be exploited remotely over the network. No authentication or special privileges are required for exploitation.
How do I fix or remediate CVE-2018-20436?
Check the references section for vendor advisories and patches from telegram. Update telegram to the latest patched version. If immediate patching is not possible, review the CVSS vector to understand the attack surface and apply compensating controls such as network segmentation or access restrictions.
How can CyberStrike help with CVE-2018-20436?
CyberStrike's AI-powered security agents can automatically detect CVE-2018-20436 across your infrastructure using autonomous pentesting, DAST scanning, and HackBrowser. The platform continuously monitors for known vulnerabilities and provides actionable remediation guidance prioritized by real-world exploitability.
How CyberStrike Helps
AI agents map your attack surface to find vulnerabilities like this one.
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