Skip to main content

Matrix CVE-2022-39203

HIGH
Improper Privilege Management (CWE-269)
2022-09-13 security-advisories@github.com
8.8
CVSS 3.1 · NVD
View

Vulnerability Assessment

Weakness
CWE
OWASP Top 10:2025
A06:2025 - Insecure Design
ASVS 5.0
V8 - Authorization Least privilege enforcement
MITRE ATT&CK

1 technique across 1 tactic: Privilege Escalation

The technique list with ATT&CK links and the kill-chain view is part of the Basic plan and up.

Impact

CVSS score of 8.8 (HIGH). Attack characteristics: network attack vector, low complexity, low privileges required, no user interaction not required.

Exploit ScenarioDerived

A remote attacker could escalate privileges to gain unauthorized elevated access by sending crafted requests to the affected application.

This Week Schedule remediation this week. Why: HIGH severity (CVSS 7.0-8.9).
Patch available 0.7% exploitation probability (EPSS)

Get an e-mail when this CVE is exploited, patched or re-scored. Free account.

Alert me

AnalysisAI

matrix-appservice-irc is an open source Node.js IRC bridge for Matrix. Rated high severity (CVSS 8.8), this vulnerability is remotely exploitable, low attack complexity. No vendor patch available.

RemediationAI

No vendor patch is available at time of analysis. Monitor vendor advisories for updates. Apply principle of least privilege, validate privilege transitions, implement proper role separation.

Affected Packages

npm matrix-appservice-irc fix: 0.35.0

Source: OSV (Open Source Vulnerabilities)

Affects your stack

Affects 1 package in npm

Checking this CVE against your own stacks and servers is part of the Basic plan and up.

Technical ContextAI · show details

This vulnerability is classified as Improper Privilege Management (CWE-269), which allows attackers to escalate privileges to gain unauthorized elevated access. matrix-appservice-irc is an open source Node.js IRC bridge for Matrix. Attackers can specify a specific string of characters, which would confuse the bridge into combining an attacker-owned channel and an existing channel, allowing them to grant themselves permissions in the channel. The vulnerability has been patched in matrix-appservice-irc 0.35.0. As a workaround operators may disable dynamic channel joining via dynamicChannels.enabled to prevent users from joining new channels, which prevents any new channels being bridged outside of what is already bridged, and what is specified in the config. Affected products include: Matrix Matrix Irc Bridge.

Know when Matrix gets its next vulnerability

  • Watch products and get an email when something new is published
  • Check this CVE against your own stack and servers
  • Exploit and PoC references, threat intelligence from 22 sources

No credit card · 7-day full trial

Severity by source

NVD PRIMARY 8.8 HIGH
AV:N/AC:L/PR:L/UI:N/S:U/C:H/I:H/A:H

Primary rating from NVD · only source for this CVE.

CVSS VectorNVD

Attack Vector
Network
Attack Complexity
Low
Privileges Required
Low
User Interaction
None
Scope
Unchanged
Confidentiality
High
Integrity
High
Availability
High

DescriptionNVD

matrix-appservice-irc is an open source Node.js IRC bridge for Matrix. Attackers can specify a specific string of characters, which would confuse the bridge into combining an attacker-owned channel and an existing channel, allowing them to grant themselves permissions in the channel. The vulnerability has been patched in matrix-appservice-irc 0.35.0. As a workaround operators may disable dynamic channel joining via dynamicChannels.enabled to prevent users from joining new channels, which prevents any new channels being bridged outside of what is already bridged, and what is specified in the config.

Threat Intelligence Overview

EPSS Score
0.7%
Top 50% exploitable
Data Quality
3 sources
Confidence: Low

How this decision was reached

The engine reads each signal below and applies a fixed list of rules from top to bottom. The first rule that matches sets the recommended action – like a statement, every line is shown.

SignalValue
Severity HIGH
CISA KEV No
Public POC No
EPSS 0.7%
Patch available Yes
Active threat No
Deciding rule
HIGH severity (CVSS 7.0-8.9)
What every action level means
Emergency Immediate action required. Criteria: CRITICAL + in CISA KEV (actively exploited) without patch, OR CRITICAL + EPSS > 30% without patch, OR CRITICAL + active threat signals without patch.
Act Now Prioritize within 24-48h. Criteria: in KEV with patch available, OR CRITICAL + public POC, OR HIGH + EPSS > 10%, OR CRITICAL + active threat, OR any CRITICAL severity.
This Week Schedule remediation this week. Criteria: HIGH severity (CVSS 7.0-8.9). Patch within normal change window.
This Month Plan within 30 days. Criteria: MEDIUM severity (CVSS 4.0-6.9), lower exploitation probability. Include in regular patch cycle.
Monitor Track and reassess. Criteria: LOW severity (CVSS 0.1-3.9), minimal exploitation risk. No immediate action needed.

SSVC AssessmentENISA

SSVC Decision· derived
Scheduled
Exploitation· derived
None
System Exposure· derived
Open
Automatable· derived
No
Human Impact· derived
Medium

Priority Score

45
Low Medium High Critical
KEV: 0
EPSS: +1
CVSS: +44
PoC: 0
Weaponized: 0
Threat intel: 0
Gov advisory: 0

Attack Technique

Privilege escalation occurs when an attacker leverages flaws in access control mechanisms to gain permissions beyond what they were originally granted.

Affected Products (CPE)NVD

cpe:2.3:a:matrix:matrix_irc_bridge:*:*:*:*:*:node.js:*:*

More in Matrix

View all
CVE-2021-34813 CRITICAL POC
9.8 Jun 16

Matrix libolm before 3.2.3 allows a malicious Matrix homeserver to crash a client (while it is attempting to retrieve an

CVE-2019-19374 CRITICAL POC
9.1 Dec 11

An issue was discovered in core/assets/form/form_question_types/form_question_type_file_upload/form_question_type_file_u

CVE-2019-19373 HIGH POC
7.5 Dec 11

An issue was discovered in Squiz Matrix CMS 5.5.0 prior to 5.5.0.3, 5.5.1 prior to 5.5.1.8, 5.5.2 prior to 5.5.2.4, and

CVE-2025-68667 CRITICAL
9.9 Dec 23

Unauthenticated remote attackers can coerce Conduit-derived Matrix homeservers into cryptographically signing arbitrary

CVE-2023-38690 CRITICAL
9.8 Aug 04

matrix-appservice-irc is a Node.js IRC bridge for Matrix. Rated critical severity (CVSS 9.8), this vulnerability is remo

CVE-2021-44538 CRITICAL
9.8 Dec 14

The olm_session_describe function in Matrix libolm before 3.2.7 is vulnerable to a buffer overflow. Rated critical sever

CVE-2019-18835 CRITICAL
9.8 Nov 08

Matrix Synapse before 1.5.0 mishandles signature checking on some federation APIs. Rated critical severity (CVSS 9.8), t

CVE-2024-45192 MEDIUM POC
5.3 Aug 22

An issue was discovered in Matrix libolm through 3.2.16. Rated medium severity (CVSS 5.3), this vulnerability is remotel

CVE-2024-45191 MEDIUM POC
5.3 Aug 22

An issue was discovered in Matrix libolm through 3.2.16. Rated medium severity (CVSS 5.3), this vulnerability is remotel

CVE-2017-14198 HIGH
8.8 Nov 30

An issue was discovered in Squiz Matrix before 5.3.6.1 and 5.4.x before 5.4.1.3. Rated high severity (CVSS 8.8), this vu

CVE-2023-43656 CRITICAL
9.0 Sep 27

matrix-hookshot is a Matrix bot for connecting to external services like GitHub, GitLab, JIRA, and more. Rated critical

CVE-2022-36009 HIGH
8.8 Aug 19

gomatrixserverlib is a Go library for matrix protocol federation. Rated high severity (CVSS 8.8), this vulnerability is

This site uses cookies essential for authentication and security. No tracking or analytics cookies are used. Privacy Policy