CVE-2013-4662
Official description Straight from the sourceThe vendor's or NVD's own wording, published unedited. Authoritative, but often terse — it says what broke, rarely what to do.
NVD · uneditedThe Quick Search API in CiviCRM 4.2.0 through 4.2.9 and 4.3.0 through 4.3.3 allows remote authenticated users to bypass the validation layer and conduct SQL injection attacks via a direct request to the "second layer" of the API, related to contact.getquick.
Technical summary Written by usOur analysis, written from the advisory, the CVSS vector and the affected-version data. It adds context the advisory leaves out, and never invents facts that are not in the source.
dbcve analysis · high confidenceSQL injection vulnerability in CiviCRM's Quick Search API (contact.getquick) allows authenticated users to bypass the validation layer through direct requests to the API's 'second layer'. Affects versions 4.2.0-4.2.9 and 4.3.0-4.3.3.
Verify against the referenced sources before acting — the references below are authoritative for this CVE, this summary is not.
Affected products & versions What the vendor confirmedThe version ranges the vendor confirmed as vulnerable. If your version sits inside a range here, treat yourself as exposed until you have upgraded.
NVD · CPE data= 4.2.0= 4.2.1= 4.2.2= 4.2.4= 4.2.5= 4.2.6= 4.2.7= 4.2.8= 4.2.9= 4.3.0= 4.3.1= 4.3.2CVSS breakdown How the score is builtThe industry scoring standard. It rates how the flaw is reached, what it takes to exploit, and what an attacker gains — the score is derived from those, not the other way round.
From the vector- Attack vector
- Network
- Complexity
- Low
- Authentication
- Single
- Confidentiality
- Partial
- Integrity
- Partial
- Availability
- Partial
AV:N/AC:L/Au:S/C:P/I:P/A:P
Am I affected? How to checkSteps we derive from the advisory and the affected-version data, so you can decide whether this CVE reaches your setup. They are a guide, not a scan — your own configuration is the authority.
dbcve checksWork through these to decide whether this CVE applies to you.
-
Identify CiviCRM installationLocate the CiviCRM codebase on your server. Check for the presence of civicrm directory or files such as civicrm_version.php or CRM/Utils/System.php in your web root.Affected if CiviCRM is not present on the server, the vulnerability does not apply.
-
Determine installed CiviCRM versionOpen civicrm_version.php in your CiviCRM root directory, or access the CiviCRM version information via Administer > System Settings > Version at /civicrm/admin/settings/version?reset=1. Compare the version number to the affected ranges.Affected if The installed version is 4.2.0 through 4.2.9, or 4.3.0 through 4.3.3.
-
Verify API access is enabledCheck if the CiviCRM API is accessible. Look for the API wrapper file at CRM/Utils/API/Scope.php or verify that the API directory is not restricted in your web server configuration. Confirm that authenticated users can access /civicrm/rest endpoint.Affected if The API is exposed and authenticated users can make requests to the REST interface.
-
Confirm contact.getquick API is accessibleTest whether the contact.getquick API endpoint responds to requests. Send an authenticated API request to the endpoint (e.g., via civicrm/rest?entity=contact&action=getquick).Affected if The contact.getquick API responds and accepts input without proper sanitization validation.
Your environment is affected if CiviCRM versions 4.2.0-4.2.9 or 4.3.0-4.3.3 are installed, the API is accessible to authenticated users, and the contact.getquick endpoint is enabled and accepts unvalidated input.
Generated from the published advisory. Verify against your own configuration.
Remediation Closing itWhat it takes to close this. Where a vendor fix exists we point at it; where none exists we say so plainly, and can build one. Effort estimates are scoped from the advisory, not from your codebase.
From vendor dataUpgrade CiviCRM to version 4.2.10 or 4.3.4 or later where the vulnerability is patched. Until then, consider restricting API access to trusted users only or implementing WAF rules for SQL injection detection.
- Consultation3.0 h
- Implementation6.0 h
- Testing3.0 h
- Review / QA2.0 h
An estimate, not a bill — we confirm scope with you before any work starts. Need it this week? Rush from $3,984.
Scan for this in your stack
Free · runs locallyCheck whether your project pulls in CVE-2013-4662 — or any other known-vulnerable package — straight from your lock files. Free and open source; it runs locally and uploads nothing.
References Go to the primary sourcePrimary sources — vendor advisories, patches and trackers. Where our summary and a reference disagree, the reference wins.
Primary sourcesPractitioner notes
ContributedPeer-ranked notes from engineers who’ve handled CVE-2013-4662 in production — separate from our analysis above.
The advisory tells you what broke. It rarely tells you what actually worked. If you’ve dealt with this one, that detail is what the next engineer is searching for.
- The version that genuinely resolved it — not the one the vendor claimed
- A config change or rule that shut the vector down
- A gotcha in the upgrade path that cost you an afternoon
No notes yet
Be the first to add a field note for this CVE — a mitigation you’ve verified, a version caveat, or a link to a working fix. Sign in above to contribute.
A place for practitioners to share what actually worked: a mitigation you’ve tested, a configuration change, a version- or environment-specific caveat, or a link to a verified patch. The most useful notes rise to the top as peers upvote them, so the signal stays high.
- Verified mitigations, workarounds, and config changes
- Version or environment caveats, and links to real fixes
- No weaponised exploit code, or anything meant to cause harm
- No spam, self-promotion, credentials, or personal data