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PHPApplication

CVE-2019-11036

CRITICAL · 9.1 CVSS v3.1 Published 2019-05-03
Fix available
A fix is available. Upgrade to 7.1.29 / 7.2.18 or later.
See remediation →
100/100
Remediation priority · Urgent
Remotely reachable No privileges Zero-click

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 · unedited
When processing certain files, PHP EXIF extension in versions 7.1.x below 7.1.29, 7.2.x below 7.2.18 and 7.3.x below 7.3.5 can be caused to read past allocated buffer in exif_process_IFD_TAG function. This may lead to information disclosure or crash.

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 confidence

A buffer over-read vulnerability in PHP's EXIF extension (exif_process_IFD_TAG function) allows reading past allocated buffer boundaries when processing certain image files, potentially exposing sensitive memory contents or causing a crash.

MitigationUpgrade PHP to version 7.1.29, 7.2.18, or 7.3.5 or later. If immediate upgrade is not feasible, disable the EXIF extension or implement input validation to reject untrusted image files.

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
PHPApplication
Affected:>= 7.1.0, < 7.1.29>= 7.2.0, < 7.2.18>= 7.3.0, < 7.3.5
FedoraOperating system
Affected:= 28= 29= 30
Software CollectionsApplication
Affected:= 1.0
Ubuntu LinuxOperating system
Affected:= 12.04= 14.04= 16.04= 18.04= 18.10= 19.04
Debian LinuxOperating system
Affected:= 8.0= 9.0= 10.0
LeapOperating system
Affected:= 15.0= 15.1= 42.3

CVSS 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
Privileges
None
User interaction
None
Scope
Unchanged
Confidentiality
High
Integrity
None
Availability
High

CVSS:3.1/AV:N/AC:L/PR:N/UI:N/S:U/C:H/I:N/A:H

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 checks

Work through these to decide whether this CVE applies to you.

  1. Determine PHP version
    Run `php -v` and note the major.minor.patch version shown (e.g., 7.2.17)
    Affected if The version falls within 7.1.0 to 7.1.28, 7.2.0 to 7.2.17, or 7.3.0 to 7.3.4
  2. Verify EXIF extension is loaded
    Run `php -m` and search for 'exif' in the output, or run `php -i | grep -i exif`
    Affected if The EXIF module appears in the list of loaded modules
  3. Confirm EXIF extension is enabled in configuration
    Check php.ini or loaded .ini files for `extension=exif` or `extension=exif.so` directive using `php --ini`
    Affected if The EXIF extension is explicitly loaded or auto-loaded in the PHP configuration

You are affected if your PHP version is 7.1.0-7.1.28, 7.2.0-7.2.17, or 7.3.0-7.3.4 AND the EXIF extension is loaded and enabled.

Generated from the published advisory. Verify against your own configuration.

Check your environment

Paste your version and any relevant configuration and it will be compared against the affected criteria above. Do not include secrets or credentials.

AI-assisted, checked against the advisory. Informational, not a guarantee.

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.

dbcve · scoped
Upgrade available Upgrade to 7.1.29 / 7.2.18 / 7.3.5 or later
Fixed in 7.1.297.2.187.3.5
Interim mitigation

Upgrade PHP to version 7.1.29, 7.2.18, or 7.3.5 or later. If immediate upgrade is not feasible, disable the EXIF extension or implement input validation to reject untrusted image files.

Recommended fix High confidence

PHP 7.1.29, 7.2.18, or 7.3.5 (or newer stable release)

  1. 1. Identify the currently installed PHP version by running 'php -v' or 'php --version'
  2. 2. For Ubuntu/Debian systems: Run 'sudo apt-get update' followed by 'sudo apt-get upgrade php' or 'sudo apt-get install php7.1 php7.2 php7.3' (specific version depends on your distribution's available packages)
  3. 3. For Fedora systems: Run 'sudo dnf update php' or 'sudo dnf upgrade php'
  4. 4. For openSUSE Leap: Run 'sudo zypper update php' or 'sudo zypper up php'
  5. 5. After upgrading, restart any web servers (Apache, Nginx) that use PHP: 'sudo systemctl restart apache2' or 'sudo systemctl restart nginx' or 'sudo systemctl restart php-fpm'
  6. 6. Verify the fix by running 'php -v' and confirming the version is 7.1.29+, 7.2.18+, or 7.3.5+
Caveat Upgrading PHP may require checking application compatibility; some legacy code or extensions may need updates for newer PHP versions

Generated from the published advisory — verify against the referenced sources before acting.

Fix this in PHP Scoped from the published advisory
  • Consultation3.0 h
  • Implementation4.0 h
  • Testing6.0 h
  • Review / QA2.0 h
15.0 hours of engineering $2,580
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Scan for this in your stack

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References Go to the primary sourcePrimary sources — vendor advisories, patches and trackers. Where our summary and a reference disagree, the reference wins.

Primary sources

Practitioner notes

Contributed

Peer-ranked notes from engineers who’ve handled CVE-2019-11036 in production — separate from our analysis above.

No notes yet

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What this is

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.

What belongs here
  • 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