dbcve.org
Joomla\!Application · Joomla

CVE-2022-27911

MEDIUM · 5.3 CVSS v3.1 Published 2022-08-31
Mitigation only
No fix yet — a mitigation exists. There is no fixed release. A documented workaround reduces exposure in the meantime.
See remediation →
62/100
Remediation priority · Elevated
Remotely reachable No privileges Zero-click

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 · unedited
An issue was discovered in Joomla! 4.2.0. Multiple Full Path Disclosures because of missing '_JEXEC or die check' caused by the PSR12 changes.

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 confidence

In Joomla! 4.2.0, multiple PHP files are missing the '_JEXEC or die' security check, which normally prevents direct script access. This missing check, introduced due to PSR12 coding standard compliance changes, allows attackers to discover full server file paths through various application endpoints. Full path disclosure is a reconnaissance vulnerability that helps attackers map the server's filesystem structure for more targeted attacks.

MitigationAdd the '_JEXEC or die' check to all affected PHP files that are missing this guard, or update to the latest Joomla version which contains the official patch for this issue.

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
Affected:= 4.2.0

CVSS 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
None
Scope
Unchanged
Confidentiality
Low
Integrity
None
Availability
None

CVSS:3.1/AV:N/AC:L/PR:N/UI:N/S:U/C:L/I:N/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 checks

Work through these to decide whether this CVE applies to you.

  1. Check Joomla version installed
    Access the Joomla administrator panel and navigate to System > Information > System Information, or inspect the libraries/src/Version.php file to read the current version number
    Affected if The installed version is exactly 4.2.0
  2. Identify PHP files missing _JEXEC check
    Use a file scanning tool or grep to search PHP files in the installation for the presence of the string '_JEXEC or die' or 'defined('_JEXEC') or die'
    Affected if Multiple PHP files throughout the Joomla structure are found to lack this security guard statement
  3. Test for path disclosure via vulnerable endpoints
    Send HTTP requests to common Joomla endpoints (such as components/com_<name>/<file>.php) and examine error messages for full server file paths
    Affected if Error responses reveal absolute file system paths indicating the missing access check is exploitable
  4. Verify Joomla 4.2.0 specific patch status
    Check Joomla's public release notes or security tracker for version 4.2.0 to confirm if the patch addressing missing _JEXEC guards has not been applied
    Affected if Running version 4.2.0 without subsequent security updates that address this specific issue

If the Joomla installation is version 4.2.0 and contains PHP files without the _JEXEC or die security check that expose full file paths in error messages, the environment is affected by this CVE.

Generated from the published advisory. Verify against your own configuration.

Check your environment

Paste your version and any relevant configuration and it will be compared against the affected criteria above. Do not include secrets or credentials.

AI-assisted, checked against the advisory. Informational, not a guarantee.

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.

dbcve · scoped
Mitigation available No clean upgrade yet — mitigate in the meantime
Mitigation

Add the '_JEXEC or die' check to all affected PHP files that are missing this guard, or update to the latest Joomla version which contains the official patch for this issue.

Recommended fix High confidence

Joomla 4.2.1 or later

  1. Download Joomla 4.2.1 or later from the official Joomla download page
  2. Backup your existing Joomla 4.2.0 installation and database
  3. Upload and extract the Joomla 4.2.1 (or latest stable) package files to your server, overwriting the existing files
  4. Run the Joomla update process by accessing your site URL - Joomla will automatically detect and complete the database migration
  5. Verify the installation by logging into the administrator backend and checking the version number under System > Information

Generated from the published advisory — verify against the referenced sources before acting.

Fix this in Joomla\! Scoped from the published advisory
  • Consultation1.0 h
  • Implementation4.0 h
  • Testing2.0 h
  • Review / QA1.0 h
8.0 hours of engineering $1,400
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References Go to the primary sourcePrimary sources — vendor advisories, patches and trackers. Where our summary and a reference disagree, the reference wins.

Primary sources

Practitioner notes

Contributed

Peer-ranked notes from engineers who’ve handled CVE-2022-27911 in production — separate from our analysis above.

No notes yet

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What this is

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.

What belongs here
  • 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