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PgbouncerApplication

CVE-2025-12819

HIGH · 8.1 CVSS v3.1 Published 2025-12-03
Fix available
A fix is available. Upgrade to 1.25.1 or later.
See remediation →
90/100
Remediation priority · Urgent
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
Untrusted search path in auth_query connection handler in PgBouncer before 1.25.1 allows an unauthenticated attacker to execute arbitrary SQL during authentication via a malicious search_path parameter in the StartupMessage.

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

PgBouncer before 1.25.1 has an untrusted search path vulnerability in its auth_query connection handler. An unauthenticated attacker can send a malicious search_path parameter in the StartupMessage during the authentication phase, causing arbitrary SQL to be executed.

MitigationUpgrade PgBouncer to version 1.25.1 or later. Until patched, restrict network access to PgBouncer to trusted sources only.

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
PgbouncerApplication
Affected:< 1.25.1

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
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 checks

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

  1. Determine PgBouncer version
    Run 'pgbouncer --version' or check the package manager (dpkg -l pgbouncer / rpm -qi pgbouncer)
    Affected if Version is below 1.25.1
  2. Locate configuration file
    Find pgbouncer.ini (commonly in /etc/pgbouncer/pgbouncer.ini or /etc/pgbouncer.ini) and look for auth_query settings
    Affected if File contains an auth_query directive pointing to a SQL query
  3. Verify auth_query is enabled
    Search for 'auth_query' or 'auth_query_url' parameters in the [databases] section or global settings of pgbouncer.ini
    Affected if auth_query is configured and active in the configuration file
  4. Check auth_user configuration
    Inspect the config for 'auth_user' setting - when auth_query is used without auth_user, the search_path manipulation is more dangerous
    Affected if auth_user is not set or set to a low-privilege user while auth_query is enabled

Environment is affected if PgBouncer version is below 1.25.1 AND auth_query is enabled in the configuration, as the vulnerability requires the auth_query feature to be active for the malicious search_path injection during authentication.

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
Upgrade available Upgrade to 1.25.1 or later
Fixed in 1.25.1
Interim mitigation

Upgrade PgBouncer to version 1.25.1 or later. Until patched, restrict network access to PgBouncer to trusted sources only.

Recommended fix High confidence

PgBouncer 1.25.1

  1. 1. Identify the current PgBouncer version by running 'pgbouncer --version' or checking the package manager.
  2. 2. Download PgBouncer version 1.25.1 from the official source at www.pgbouncer.org or via your system's package manager.
  3. 3. Stop the PgBouncer service before upgrading: 'sudo systemctl stop pgbouncer' or 'sudo service pgbouncer stop'.
  4. 4. Install the upgraded PgBouncer 1.25.1 package using your system's package manager (e.g., 'sudo apt-get update && sudo apt-get install pgbouncer' for Debian/Ubuntu).
  5. 5. Verify the installation was successful by running 'pgbouncer --version' and confirming it shows 1.25.1 or higher.
  6. 6. Review the pgbouncer.ini configuration file to ensure no custom auth_query settings that might reintroduce the vulnerability are present.
  7. 7. Start the PgBouncer service: 'sudo systemctl start pgbouncer' or 'sudo service pgbouncer start'.
  8. 8. Monitor logs for any authentication issues after the upgrade.
Caveat Review release notes for 1.25.1 to check for any configuration or behavioral changes that may affect your setup

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

Fix this in Pgbouncer Scoped from the published advisory
  • Consultation1.0 h
  • Implementation2.0 h
  • Testing2.0 h
  • Review / QA1.0 h
6.0 hours of engineering $1,040
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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-2025-12819 in production — separate from our analysis above.

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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