CVE-2019-14770
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 · uneditedIn Backdrop CMS 1.12.x before 1.12.8 and 1.13.x before 1.13.3, some menu links within the administration bar may be crafted to execute JavaScript when the administrator is logged in and uses the search functionality. (This issue is mitigated by the attacker needing permissions to create administrative menu links, such as by creating a content type or layout. Such permissions are usually restricted to trusted or administrative 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 confidenceBackdrop CMS versions prior to 1.12.8 and 1.13.3 contain a stored XSS vulnerability in the administration bar's search functionality. Attackers with permissions to create administrative menu links (e.g., via content types or layouts) can embed malicious JavaScript into menu link titles that executes when an administrator uses the search feature.
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>= 1.12.0, < 1.12.8>= 1.13.0, < 1.13.3CVSS 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
- Required
- Scope
- Changed
- Confidentiality
- Low
- Integrity
- Low
- Availability
- None
CVSS:3.0/AV:N/AC:L/PR:N/UI:R/S:C/C:L/I:L/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 Backdrop CMS core versionNavigate to Reports > Status report in the admin menu, or check the VERSION file in the Backdrop root directory. Compare the version number against the affected ranges: 1.12.0 to 1.12.7, or 1.13.0 to 1.13.2.Affected if The installed version is 1.12.0 through 1.12.7, or 1.13.0 through 1.13.2.
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Verify if the administration bar search feature is in useLog in as an administrator and locate the administration bar at the top of the page. Click the search icon or text field in the admin bar to confirm the search functionality exists and is accessible.Affected if The admin bar search feature is present and functional.
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Identify users with permission to create content types or layoutsGo to People > Permissions (or Roles) and review which roles have 'Administer content types' or 'Administer layouts' permissions. Check the actual user accounts assigned to these roles at People > List.Affected if Any role other than the super administrator has permissions to create or edit content types or layouts.
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Inspect existing menu links for suspicious charactersGo to Structure > Menus > Main menu (or the menu where administrative links may exist). Examine each menu link title for unusual characters such as <script>, javascript:, onerror=, or encoded HTML entities that could indicate XSS payloads.Affected if Any menu link titles contain JavaScript event handlers, script tags, or encoded XSS patterns.
You are affected if your Backdrop CMS version falls within 1.12.0-1.12.7 or 1.13.0-1.13.2 AND non-administrative users have content type or layout creation permissions AND malicious menu link titles exist in your menus.
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 data1.12.81.13.3
Update Backdrop CMS to version 1.12.8, 1.13.3, or later. Additionally, restrict permissions for creating content types and layouts to trusted administrators only.
- Consultation1.0 h
- Implementation1.0 h
- Testing1.0 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 $1,200.
Scan for this in your stack
Free · runs locallyCheck whether your project pulls in CVE-2019-14770 — 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-2019-14770 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
- No weaponised exploit code, or anything meant to cause harm
- No spam, self-promotion, credentials, or personal data