PfsenseApplication · Netgate
CVE-2019-11816
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 · uneditedIncorrect access control in the WebUI in OPNsense before version 19.1.8, and pfsense before 2.4.4-p3 allows remote authenticated users to escalate privileges to administrator via a specially crafted request.
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 confidenceA privilege escalation vulnerability exists in the WebUI of OPNsense before 19.1.8 and pfSense before 2.4.4-p3 due to incorrect access control. An authenticated remote user with limited privileges can craft a specially designed request to elevate their session to administrator-level access, bypassing the intended role-based access controls.
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
PfsenseApplication
<= 2.4.4= 2.4.4< 19.1.8CVSS 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
- High
- User interaction
- None
- Scope
- Unchanged
- Confidentiality
- High
- Integrity
- High
- Availability
- High
CVSS:3.1/AV:N/AC:L/PR:H/UI:N/S:U/C:H/I:H/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 checksWork through these to decide whether this CVE applies to you.
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Identify the installed productAccess the WebUI dashboard or run 'uname -a' via SSH/shell to determine if the system is running pfSense or OPNsenseAffected if The system is either pfSense or OPNsense
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Check pfSense versionLog into the WebUI and navigate to System > General or execute 'grep -i version /usr/local/pfsense/etc/version' via shellAffected if The displayed version is 2.4.4 or lower (any version <= 2.4.4)
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Check OPNsense versionLog into the WebUI and navigate to System > Firmware or execute 'opnsense-version' via shellAffected if The displayed version is 19.1.7 or lower (any version < 19.1.8)
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Verify WebUI access control configurationReview user accounts in the WebUI under System > Access > Users to confirm non-administrator accounts exist with limited privilegesAffected if There are user accounts assigned roles other than 'Administrator' with WebUI access
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Confirm affected configuration stateCheck if the system is running with default or weakened access control by examining the user privilege assignments in the WebUIAffected if Limited-privilege users can access the WebUI and the system version falls within the affected ranges listed above
A system is affected if it runs pfSense version 2.4.4 or lower, or OPNsense version below 19.1.8, and has the WebUI enabled with non-administrator user accounts present.
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 data19.1.8
Upgrade OPNsense to version 19.1.8 or later, and pfSense to version 2.4.4-p3 or later to obtain the patched access control enforcement.
Fix this in Pfsense
Scoped from the published advisory
- Consultation3.0 h
- Implementation6.0 h
- Testing4.0 h
- Review / QA3.0 h
An estimate, not a bill — we confirm scope with you before any work starts. Need it this week? Rush from $4,512.
Scan for this in your stack
Free · runs locallyCheck whether your project pulls in CVE-2019-11816 — 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-2019-11816 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
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- Verified mitigations, workarounds, and config changes
- Version or environment caveats, and links to real fixes
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