CVE-2020-10199

HIGH KEV NUCLEI

Nexus Repository Manager Java EL Injection RCE

Title source: metasploit
STIX 2.1

Exploitation Summary

CVE-2020-10199 is actively exploited and listed in the CISA Known Exploited Vulnerabilities (KEV) catalog, added November 3, 2021. EIP tracks 10 public exploits from researchers including 1F98D, Metasploit, zhzyker, including a Metasploit module exploits/linux/http/nexus_repo_manager_el_injection. A Nuclei detection template is also available.

AI-analyzed exploit summary This exploit leverages a Java EL injection vulnerability in Sonatype Nexus Repository Manager 3.21.1 and below to achieve remote code execution. It authenticates as an admin user and sends a maliciously crafted payload to execute arbitrary commands via the `/service/rest/beta/repositories/go/group` endpoint.

Description

Sonatype Nexus Repository before 3.21.2 allows JavaEL Injection (issue 1 of 2).

Exploits (10)

exploitdb WORKING POC VERIFIED
by 1F98D · pythonwebappsjava
https://www.exploit-db.com/exploits/49385

This exploit leverages a Java EL injection vulnerability in Sonatype Nexus Repository Manager 3.21.1 and below to achieve remote code execution. It authenticates as an admin user and sends a maliciously crafted payload to execute arbitrary commands via the `/service/rest/beta/repositories/go/group` endpoint.

Classification
Working Poc 100%
Attack Type
Rce
Complexity
Trivial
Reliability
Reliable
Target: Sonatype Nexus Repository Manager 3.21.1 and below
Auth required
Prerequisites: Valid admin credentials · Network access to the target server
devstral-2 · analyzed Feb 16, 2026 Full analysis →
exploitdb WORKING POC VERIFIED
by Metasploit · rubyremotelinux
https://www.exploit-db.com/exploits/48343

This Metasploit module exploits a Java EL injection vulnerability in Nexus Repository Manager to achieve remote code execution. It authenticates with provided credentials, crafts a malicious EL payload, and executes arbitrary commands via a command stager.

Classification
Working Poc 100%
Attack Type
Rce
Complexity
Moderate
Reliability
Reliable
Target: Nexus Repository Manager <= 3.21.1
Auth required
Prerequisites: Valid Nexus credentials · Network access to the target
devstral-2 · analyzed Feb 16, 2026 Full analysis →
nomisec WORKING POC 43 stars
by zhzyker · remote-auth
https://github.com/zhzyker/CVE-2020-10199_POC-EXP

This repository contains a working exploit for CVE-2020-10199, a remote command execution vulnerability in Nexus Repository Manager 3.x. The exploit leverages deserialization via BCEL (Byte Code Engineering Library) to execute arbitrary commands on the target system.

Classification
Working Poc 95%
Attack Type
Rce
Complexity
Moderate
Reliability
Reliable
Target: Nexus Repository Manager 3.x OSS / Pro <= 3.21.1
Auth required
Prerequisites: Valid credentials for the Nexus Repository Manager · Network access to the target system
devstral-2 · analyzed Feb 16, 2026 Full analysis →
nomisec WORKING POC 35 stars
by jas502n · remote-auth
https://github.com/jas502n/CVE-2020-10199

This repository provides proof-of-concept exploits for CVE-2020-10199, CVE-2020-10204, and CVE-2020-11444 in Nexus Repository Manager 3. It includes command injection payloads for RCE and details on privilege escalation and authentication bypass vulnerabilities.

Classification
Working Poc 90%
Attack Type
Rce | Auth Bypass
Complexity
Moderate
Reliability
Reliable
Target: Nexus Repository Manager 3 <= 3.21.2
Auth required
Prerequisites: Access to vulnerable Nexus instance · Valid credentials for some endpoints
devstral-2 · analyzed Feb 16, 2026 Full analysis →
nomisec WORKING POC 31 stars
by aleenzz · remote-auth
https://github.com/aleenzz/CVE-2020-10199

This PoC exploits CVE-2020-10199, a remote code execution vulnerability in Sonatype Nexus Repository Manager 3. The exploit leverages a deserialization flaw via BCEL (Byte Code Engineering Library) to execute arbitrary commands on the target system.

Classification
Working Poc 90%
Attack Type
Rce
Complexity
Moderate
Reliability
Reliable
Target: Sonatype Nexus Repository Manager 3
Auth required
Prerequisites: Valid credentials for authentication · Network access to the target system
devstral-2 · analyzed Feb 16, 2026 Full analysis →
nomisec SCANNER 25 stars
by magicming200 · poc
https://github.com/magicming200/CVE-2020-10199_CVE-2020-10204

This repository contains a Java-based GUI tool for detecting CVE-2020-10199 and CVE-2020-10204 vulnerabilities in Sonatype Nexus Repository Manager. It requires authenticated access and uses randomized payloads for stability.

Classification
Scanner 90%
Attack Type
Rce
Complexity
Moderate
Reliability
Reliable
Target: Sonatype Nexus Repository Manager OSS/Pro <=3.21.1
Auth required
Prerequisites: Authenticated low-privilege account (CVE-2020-10199) · Authenticated admin account (CVE-2020-10204) · Valid cookie and CSRF token
devstral-2 · analyzed Feb 16, 2026 Full analysis →
nomisec WORKING POC 19 stars
by wsfengfan · infoleak
https://github.com/wsfengfan/CVE-2020-10199-10204

This PoC demonstrates CVE-2020-10199 and CVE-2020-10204, which are EL injection vulnerabilities in Sonatype Nexus Repository Manager. The script checks for the presence of these vulnerabilities by injecting a test string and verifying its reflection in the response.

Classification
Working Poc 90%
Attack Type
Other
Complexity
Trivial
Reliability
Reliable
Target: Sonatype Nexus Repository Manager
Auth required
Prerequisites: Valid session cookie · CSRF token · Access to the target application
devstral-2 · analyzed Feb 16, 2026 Full analysis →
nomisec WORKING POC
by finn79426 · remote-auth
https://github.com/finn79426/CVE-2020-10199

This repository provides a working proof-of-concept exploit for CVE-2020-10199, targeting Sonatype Nexus Repository Manager OSS 3.20.1-01. It demonstrates remote code execution via Java EL injection and includes a BCEL payload to bypass security restrictions, ultimately achieving a reverse shell.

Classification
Working Poc 95%
Attack Type
Rce
Complexity
Moderate
Reliability
Reliable
Target: Sonatype Nexus Repository Manager OSS 3.20.1-01
Auth required
Prerequisites: Authenticated session with valid NX-ANTI-CSRF-TOKEN and NXSESSIONID · Access to the target's REST API endpoint
devstral-2 · analyzed Feb 16, 2026 Full analysis →
nomisec WORKING POC
by hugosg97 · remote-auth
https://github.com/hugosg97/CVE-2020-10199-Nexus-3.21.01

This exploit leverages an authenticated remote code execution vulnerability in Sonatype Nexus 3.21.01 by injecting a malicious expression into the repository configuration, which executes arbitrary commands via Java Runtime.

Classification
Working Poc 95%
Attack Type
Rce
Complexity
Moderate
Reliability
Reliable
Target: Sonatype Nexus Repository Manager 3.21.01
Auth required
Prerequisites: Valid credentials for Nexus Repository Manager · Network access to the target
devstral-2 · analyzed Feb 16, 2026 Full analysis →
metasploit WORKING POC EXCELLENT
by Alvaro Muñoz, wvu · rubypoclinux
https://github.com/rapid7/metasploit-framework/blob/master/modules/exploits/linux/http/nexus_repo_manager_el_injection.rb

This Metasploit module exploits a Java EL injection vulnerability in Nexus Repository Manager to achieve remote code execution. It authenticates with provided credentials, crafts a malicious EL payload, and executes arbitrary commands via a command stager.

Classification
Working Poc 100%
Attack Type
Rce
Complexity
Moderate
Reliability
Reliable
Target: Nexus Repository Manager <= 3.21.1
Auth required
Prerequisites: Valid Nexus credentials · Network access to the target
devstral-2 · analyzed Feb 16, 2026 Full analysis →

Nuclei Templates (1)

Sonatype Nexus Repository Manager 3 - Remote Code Execution
HIGHby rootxharsh,iamnoooob,pdresearch
FOFA: title="nexus repository manager"

References (5)

Core 5

Scores

CVSS v3 8.8
EPSS 0.9438
EPSS Percentile 100.0%
Attack Vector NETWORK
CVSS:3.1/AV:N/AC:L/PR:L/UI:N/S:U/C:H/I:H/A:H

CISA SSVC

Vulnrichment
Exploitation active
Automatable no
Technical Impact total

Details

CISA KEV 2021-11-03
VulnCheck KEV 2021-11-03
InTheWild.io 2021-07-23
ENISA EUVD EUVD-2020-0379
CWE
CWE-917
Status published
Products (2)
org.sonatype.nexus/nexus-extdirect 0 - 3.21.2Maven
sonatype/nexus < 3.21.2
Published Apr 01, 2020
KEV Added Nov 03, 2021
Tracked Since Feb 18, 2026