CVE-2020-36204 is a medium-severity (CVSS 4.7) vulnerability in im. 1 public exploit reference exists, so weaponization risk is real. A fix is available for im — see the affected versions and patch details below.
Data races in im
EPSS Exploitation Probability
Probability of exploitation in the next 30 days, from FIRST.org EPSS.
How urgent is this, really
CVE-2020-36204 by exploitation likelihood (EPSS) against impact (CVSS). Outside the shaded patch-first corner.
Where this sits among everything scored
Of 385,738 CVEs with a current EPSS score, this one falls in the < 10% band (highlighted). Counts from FIRST.org, log-scaled.
Real-World Exposure
imReal-time download stats are indexed for npm and PyPI packages. This vulnerability affects crates.io packages — download data is not available via public APIs for these ecosystems.
Description
An issue was discovered in the im crate through 2020-11-09 for Rust. Because TreeFocus does not have bounds on its Send trait or Sync trait, a data race can occur.
Affected Packages
| Ecosystem | Package | Vulnerable range | Fix |
|---|---|---|---|
| 🦀crates.io | im | ≥ 12.0.0&&< 15.1.0 | 15.1.0cargo update -p im --precise 15.1.0 |
Affected Products
imim_projectResearch use only. For defensive security, authorized penetration testing, and academic research only. Never execute exploit code against systems without explicit written authorization.
Detection & mitigation playbook
Open-source dependencyDetect
Scan your dependency tree (package-lock.json, pnpm-lock.yaml, requirements.txt, go.sum, etc.) for im, including transitive dependencies — a direct dependency you never call can still pull in a vulnerable version.
Fix
Update im to 15.1.0 or later, then make sure no transitive (indirect) dependency still pins the vulnerable range — O3 confirms CVE-2020-36204 is resolved across your whole dependency graph.
Workarounds
If you can't upgrade right away: gate or disable the affected feature, validate untrusted input at the boundary, and avoid passing attacker-controlled data into the vulnerable path. O3's runtime protection blocks exploitation in production as an interim safeguard until the upgrade lands.
Frequently Asked Questions
Is CVE-2020-36204 in your dependencies?
Find it across crates.io, including transitive dependencies.