CVE-2020-2286: 
Java vulnerability analysis and mitigation

CVE-2020-2286 affects the Jenkins Role-based Authorization Strategy Plugin versions 3.0 and earlier. The vulnerability was discovered by Raihaan Shouhell from Autodesk, Inc and was disclosed on October 8, 2020. This security issue impacts the permission caching mechanism introduced in version 2.12 of the plugin (Jenkins Advisory, OSS Security).

The vulnerability stems from an improper cache invalidation mechanism in the Role-based Authorization Strategy Plugin. When an administrator changes the permission configuration, the plugin fails to properly invalidate its permission cache. This implementation flaw allows the system to continue granting permissions based on outdated configuration settings. The vulnerability has been assigned a CVSS v3.1 base score of 8.8 (High) with the vector string CVSS:3.1/AV:N/AC:L/PR:N/UI:R/S:U/C:H/I:H/A:H (Jenkins Advisory).

The impact of this vulnerability is significant as it can result in unauthorized access persistence. Users may retain permissions that have been explicitly revoked by administrators, as the system continues to use cached permissions instead of the updated configuration. This creates a security gap where revoked permissions remain effectively active, potentially allowing unauthorized access to sensitive Jenkins resources (Jenkins Advisory).

The vulnerability can be exploited when an administrator changes permission configurations in the Role-based Authorization Strategy Plugin. The cached permissions remain active even after they should have been revoked, allowing users to retain access rights that have been explicitly removed (Jenkins Advisory).

The vulnerability has been fixed in Role-based Authorization Strategy Plugin version 3.1, which properly invalidates the cache when configuration changes are made. Users are strongly advised to upgrade to this version or later to address the security issue. The fix ensures that permission changes are immediately reflected in the system's behavior (Jenkins Advisory, OSS Security).