TYPO3CMS
CVE-2020-11069
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 TYPO3 CMS 9.0.0 through 9.5.16 and 10.0.0 through 10.4.1, it has been discovered that the backend user interface and install tool are vulnerable to a same-site request forgery. A backend user can be tricked into interacting with a malicious resource an attacker previously managed to upload to the web server. Scripts are then executed with the privileges of the victims' user session. In a worst-case scenario, new admin users can be created which can directly be used by an attacker. The vulnerability is basically a cross-site request forgery (CSRF) triggered by a cross-site scripting vulnerability (XSS) - but happens on the same target host - thus, it's actually a same-site request forgery. Malicious payload such as HTML containing JavaScript might be provided by either an authenticated backend user or by a non-authenticated user using a third party extension, e.g. file upload in a contact form with knowing the target location. To be successful, the attacked victim requires an active and valid backend or install tool user session at the time of the attack. This has been fixed in 9.5.17 and 10.4.2. The deployment of additional mitigation techniques is suggested as described below. - Sudo Mode Extension This TYPO3 extension intercepts modifications to security relevant database tables, e.g. those storing user accounts or storages of the file abstraction layer. Modifications need to confirmed again by the acting user providing their password again. This technique is known as sudo mode. This way, unintended actions happening in the background can be mitigated. - https://github.com/FriendsOfTYPO3/sudo-mode - https://extensions.typo3.org/extension/sudo_mode - Content Security Policy Content Security Policies tell (modern) browsers how resources served a particular site are handled. It is also possible to disallow script executions for specific locations. In a TYPO3 context, it is suggested to disallow direct script execution at least for locations /fileadmin/ and /uploads/.
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 confidenceTYPO3 CMS versions 9.0.0-9.5.16 and 10.0.0-10.4.1 contain a same-site request forgery vulnerability where malicious HTML/JavaScript uploaded to the server (by authenticated or unauthenticated users via extensions) can trick authenticated backend users into executing privileged actions, potentially creating new admin accounts.
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
TYPO3CMS
>= 9.0.0, <= 9.5.16>= 10.0.0, <= 10.4.1CVSS 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
- Low
- Privileges
- None
- User interaction
- Required
- Scope
- Unchanged
- Confidentiality
- High
- Integrity
- High
- Availability
- High
CVSS:3.1/AV:N/AC:L/PR:N/UI:R/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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Check installed TYPO3 versionLog into the TYPO3 backend and navigate to the 'About' module (or check the composer.json file in the web root for the 'typo3/cms' version). Compare the version number against the affected ranges: 9.0.0-9.5.16 or 10.0.0-10.4.1.Affected if The installed version falls within 9.0.0-9.5.16 or 10.0.0-10.4.1.
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Identify enabled file upload extensionsIn the TYPO3 backend, go to 'Extension Manager' and review installed extensions. Look for extensions that provide file upload functionality (such as filelist, extbase, or third-party upload extensions). Check the file admin configuration in the 'File' module to see which user groups can upload files.Affected if Extensions allowing file uploads to /fileadmin/ or /uploads/ directories are enabled and accessible to unauthenticated or low-privileged users.
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Inspect upload directories for suspicious filesUse a file manager or command line to list all files in /fileadmin/ and /uploads/ directories. Search for files with extensions such as .html, .htm, .js, or .php that were recently created or modified.Affected if Any HTML files containing script tags, or JavaScript files, exist in upload directories.
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Review backend user accounts for unauthorized admin creationIn the TYPO3 backend, navigate to 'User Management' (or 'Admin Tools > Users') and review all backend user accounts. Check for new or unexpected accounts with administrator privileges.Affected if There are backend admin accounts that were not created by known administrators.
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Check access logs for privileged action requestsReview web server access logs (Apache/nginx) for POST requests toTYPO3 backend endpoints such as /typo3/record/commit, /typo3/ajax/ or user creation routes, especially those originating from the same site (referer matching the site domain) that may indicate cross-site request forgery.Affected if Logs show privileged actions (user creation, permission changes) performed shortly after file upload activity.
A system is affected if it runs TYPO3 version 9.0.0-9.5.16 or 10.0.0-10.4.1 and allows file uploads to accessible directories where malicious HTML/JavaScript could be stored and executed in a victim's browser.
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 dataUpgrade to TYPO3 9.5.17 or 10.4.2 or later; additionally deploy the Sudo Mode extension to require password confirmation for sensitive actions and implement Content Security Policy headers to disallow script execution in /fileadmin/ and /uploads/ directories.
Fix this in TYPO3
Scoped from the published advisory
- Consultation3.0 h
- Implementation6.0 h
- Testing5.0 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 $4,752.
Scan for this in your stack
Free · runs locallyCheck whether your project pulls in CVE-2020-11069 — 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-2020-11069 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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