ElasticsearchDatabase / datastore · Elastic
CVE-2019-7611
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 · uneditedA permission issue was found in Elasticsearch versions before 5.6.15 and 6.6.1 when Field Level Security and Document Level Security are disabled and the _aliases, _shrink, or _split endpoints are used . If the elasticsearch.yml file has xpack.security.dls_fls.enabled set to false, certain permission checks are skipped when users perform one of the actions mentioned above, to make existing data available under a new index/alias name. This could result in an attacker gaining additional permissions against a restricted index.
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 confidenceThis is a permission bypass vulnerability in Elasticsearch where disabling Field Level Security and Document Level Security (xpack.security.dls_fls.enabled=false) inadvertently causes permission checks to be skipped for the _aliases, _shrink, and _split endpoints, potentially allowing unauthorized access to restricted indices.
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
ElasticsearchDatabase / datastore
< 5.6.15>= 6.0.0, < 6.6.1CVSS 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
- High
- Privileges
- None
- User interaction
- None
- Scope
- Unchanged
- Confidentiality
- High
- Integrity
- High
- Availability
- High
CVSS:3.1/AV:N/AC:H/PR:N/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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Determine installed Elasticsearch versionRun 'curl -XGET localhost:9200' or check the installed package (dpkg -l elasticsearch or rpm -q elasticsearch)Affected if Version is less than 5.6.15, or 6.0.0 through 6.6.0 inclusive
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Locate and inspect elasticsearch.ymlFind elasticsearch.yml in the config directory (typically /etc/elasticsearch/ or <install_path>/config/) and search for 'xpack.security.dls_fls.enabled'Affected if The setting xpack.security.dls_fls.enabled is explicitly set to false
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Verify affected endpoints are accessibleTest unauthenticated or low-privilege access to _aliases, _shrink, and _split endpoints on restricted indices using curlAffected if Requests to these endpoints succeed without proper document-level security checks when DLS/FLS is disabled
You are affected if your Elasticsearch version is in the vulnerable range AND xpack.security.dls_fls.enabled is set to false in your configuration, allowing potential unauthorized access via the _aliases, _shrink, or _split endpoints.
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 data5.6.156.6.1
Upgrade Elasticsearch to version 5.6.15 or 6.6.1 or later, or ensure xpack.security.dls_fls.enabled is not set to false in elasticsearch.yml.
Fix this in Elasticsearch
Scoped from the published advisory
- Consultation3.0 h
- Implementation6.0 h
- Testing4.0 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 $4,224.
Scan for this in your stack
Free · runs locallyCheck whether your project pulls in CVE-2019-7611 — 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-2019-7611 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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- Version or environment caveats, and links to real fixes
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