Joomla\!Application · Joomla
CVE-2019-12764
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 · uneditedAn issue was discovered in Joomla! before 3.9.7. The update server URL of com_joomlaupdate can be manipulated by non Super-Admin users.
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 in Joomla! allows non-Super-Admin users to manipulate the update server URL in the com_joomlaupdate component. This could enable an attacker to redirect update requests to a malicious server, potentially leading to injection of malicious updates or further compromise of the Joomla! installation.
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
Joomla\!Application
>= 3.8.13, < 3.9.7CVSS 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
- Low
- User interaction
- None
- Scope
- Unchanged
- Confidentiality
- None
- Integrity
- High
- Availability
- None
CVSS:3.1/AV:N/AC:L/PR:L/UI:N/S:U/C:N/I:H/A:N
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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Check your Joomla! versionLog into the Joomla! administrator panel and navigate to System > System Information, or check the libraries/cms.php file for the VERSION constant. Alternatively, access the /administrator/manifests/files/joomla.xml file to read the version.Affected if The installed version is >= 3.8.13 and < 3.9.7
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Verify user group permissions for com_joomlaupdateNavigate to System > Manage > Global Check-in, then access the com_joomlaupdate component directly via URL: /administrator/index.php?option=com_joomlaupdate. Attempt to access this component with a non-Super-Admin account to confirm whether permission controls are properly enforced.Affected if Non-Super-Admin users can access or modify settings in the com_joomlaupdate component
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Inspect the update server configurationExamine the configuration.php file in the Joomla! root directory for any custom update server URLs. Additionally, check the #__update_sites table in the database for the update site entry and its URL.Affected if The update server URL has been changed from the default Joomla! update servers or points to an unrecognized domain
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Audit non-Super-Admin user permissionsNavigate to Users > Groups in the administrator panel and review which groups have Administrator-level access or higher. Check the viewing access levels assigned to the com_joomlaupdate component by inspecting the asset table in the database.Affected if Users without Super-Admin privileges have administrative access to components that should be restricted to Super-Admins only
Your Joomla! installation is affected if it runs version 3.8.13 through 3.9.6 and non-Super-Admin users can access or modify the com_joomlaupdate component settings.
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 data3.9.7
Upgrade to Joomla! 3.9.7 or later which contains the access control fix. Additionally, restrict administrative panel access to trusted Super-Admin users only and audit user permissions.
Fix this in Joomla\!
Scoped from the published advisory
- Consultation1.0 h
- Implementation2.0 h
- Testing2.0 h
- Review / QA1.0 h
An estimate, not a bill — we confirm scope with you before any work starts. Need it this week? Rush from $1,664.
Scan for this in your stack
Free · runs locallyCheck whether your project pulls in CVE-2019-12764 — 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-2019-12764 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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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