---
id: CVE-2020-15778
title: >-
  scp in OpenSSH through 8.3p1 allows command injection in the scp.c toremote
  function, as demonstrated by backtick characters in the destination argument
summary: >-
  scp in OpenSSH through 8.3p1 allows command injection in the scp.c toremote
  function, as demonstrated by backtick characters in the destination argument.
  NOTE: the vendor reportedly has stated that they intentionally omit validation
  of "…
severity: high
cvss: 7.4
cvssVector: 'CVSS:3.1/AV:A/AC:L/PR:L/UI:R/S:U/C:H/I:H/A:H'
cwe:
  - CWE-78
  - CWE-78
vendor: openbsd
product: openssh
affected:
  - openssh < 8.3
  - openssh = 8.3
  - a700s_firmware
  - active_iq_unified_manager >= 9.5
  - hci_management_node
  - solidfire
  - steelstore_cloud_integrated_storage
  - hci_compute_node
  - hci_storage_node
  - fabric_operating_system
patched:
  - openssh 8.3
published: '2020-07-24'
updated: '2026-10-14'
sourceUpdated: '2026-10-14T10:17:30.510'
source: NVD
sourceUrl: 'https://nvd.nist.gov/vuln/detail/CVE-2020-15778'
references:
  - url: 'https://access.redhat.com/errata/RHSA-2024:3166'
    label: cve@mitre.org
  - url: 'https://github.com/cpandya2909/CVE-2020-15778/'
    label: cve@mitre.org
  - url: 'https://news.ycombinator.com/item?id=25005567'
    label: cve@mitre.org
  - url: 'https://security.gentoo.org/glsa/202212-06'
    label: cve@mitre.org
  - url: 'https://security.netapp.com/advisory/ntap-20200731-0007/'
    label: cve@mitre.org
  - url: 'https://www.openssh.com/security.html'
    label: cve@mitre.org
  - url: 'https://access.redhat.com/errata/RHSA-2024:3166'
    label: af854a3a-2127-422b-91ae-364da2661108
  - url: 'https://github.com/cpandya2909/CVE-2020-15778/'
    label: af854a3a-2127-422b-91ae-364da2661108
  - url: 'https://news.ycombinator.com/item?id=25005567'
    label: af854a3a-2127-422b-91ae-364da2661108
  - url: 'https://security.gentoo.org/glsa/202212-06'
    label: af854a3a-2127-422b-91ae-364da2661108
  - url: 'https://security.netapp.com/advisory/ntap-20200731-0007/'
    label: af854a3a-2127-422b-91ae-364da2661108
  - url: 'https://www.openssh.com/security.html'
    label: af854a3a-2127-422b-91ae-364da2661108
  - url: 'https://cert-portal.siemens.com/productcert/html/ssa-398330.html'
    label: 0b142b55-0307-4c5a-b3c9-f314f3fb7c5e
tags:
  - nvd
  - exploit-available
epss: 0.12996
epssPercentile: 0.96256
exploits:
  github: 4
  githubRepos:
    - 'https://github.com/cpandya2909/CVE-2020-15778'
    - 'https://github.com/Neko-chanQwQ/CVE-2020-15778-Exploit'
    - 'https://github.com/yifanzhg/CVE-2020-15778'
  checkedAt: '2026-10-14T10:26:15.308Z'
exploitAvailable: true
ingestedAt: '2026-10-14T10:25:41.179Z'
---

## Overview

scp in OpenSSH through 8.3p1 allows command injection in the scp.c toremote function, as demonstrated by backtick characters in the destination argument. NOTE: the vendor reportedly has stated that they intentionally omit validation of "anomalous argument transfers" because that could "stand a great chance of breaking existing workflows."

## Affected

- `openssh < 8.3`
- `openssh = 8.3`
- `a700s_firmware`
- `active_iq_unified_manager >= 9.5`
- `hci_management_node`
- `solidfire`
- `steelstore_cloud_integrated_storage`
- `hci_compute_node`
- `hci_storage_node`
- `fabric_operating_system`

## Remediation

Upgrade past the affected range:

- `openssh 8.3`