Attack ChainAIDerived
Hypothetical attack flow derived from CVE metadata – not a confirmed exploit chain
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AccessIdentify Joomla instance with CORS enabled
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DeliveryCraft Origin header with CRLF injection
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ExploitSubmit forged cross-origin API request
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ExecutionServer bypasses allowlist validation
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PersistReceive permissive CORS response headers
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ImpactRead or modify victim session data via API
Vulnerability Assessment
| Weakness |
CWE
OWASP Top 10:2025
A05:2025 - Injection
ASVS 5.0
V1 - Encoding and Sanitization CRLF sequence sanitization
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| Exploitation Conditions | Exploitation requires that the target Joomla installation has CORS explicitly configured with an origin allowlist - the vulnerability manifests in the validation of that allowlist, so Joomla deployments with no CORS configuration or with CORS headers managed entirely at the reverse proxy layer are not affected through this code path. The CVSS 4.0 UI:N metric indicates that a victim visiting a malicious page is not strictly required; a direct crafted API request with a manipulated Origin header may be sufficient to trigger the bypass. Limiting factors include: the attacker must know the target Joomla API endpoint structure; the bypass does not grant server-side code execution, file system access, or direct database access; impact is constrained to the scope of the session or API token context at the time of the forged request; and the CRLF-injection mechanism (CWE-93) implies the attacker must understand the specific parser flaw to construct a working bypass. Joomla instances without CORS enabled are not exposed. |
| Impact | The CVSS 4.0 base score of 6.9 with vector AV:N/AC:L/AT:N/PR:N/UI:N/VC:N/VI:N/VA:N/SC:L/SI:L/SA:L reflects a medium-severity, network-accessible vulnerability requiring no privileges and no user interaction, but with impact constrained to low-level influence over subsequent-system resources. No EPSS score was provided in the source data, making probabilistic exploitation forecasting unavailable. There is no CISA KEV listing and no known public POC, so exploitation status is currently theoretical. The CWE-93 (CRLF Injection) root cause is a notable signal: it implies exploitation requires crafting a non-trivial malformed Origin header rather than simply pointing a browser at a malicious page, which modestly elevates attack complexity above what AC:L alone conveys. Defenders should weigh that the zero-privilege, no-interaction profile makes this scalable if exploit techniques become public, while the low-impact scope limits the blast radius per successful exploitation. There is no conflicting data between sources, but the absence of EPSS and KEV data means residual uncertainty about real-world exploitation likelihood. |
| Exploit ScenarioDerived | An attacker sends a direct HTTP request to the Joomla API endpoint with a crafted Origin header containing CRLF sequences (e.g., Origin: attacker.example.com Origin: allowed.example.com), causing the server's validation logic to accept the unauthorized origin and return permissive Access-Control-Allow-Origin headers. In a browser-mediated follow-on, the attacker's malicious web page exploits those permissive headers to silently issue cross-origin API calls using the victim's authenticated Joomla session, reading sensitive CMS content or performing state-changing operations such as modifying articles or user data. No public exploit code has been identified at time of analysis, but the CRLF injection technique is well-documented in security literature and does not require specialized tooling. |
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Alert meAnalysisAIv1 – Aug 18, 2026
Improper CORS origin validation in Joomla! CMS versions 4.0.0-5.4.7 and 6.0.0-6.1.2 allows remote attackers to bypass the configured origin allowlist and make unauthorized cross-origin requests. The CWE-93 (CRLF Injection) classification indicates the bypass mechanism likely involves injecting carriage-return/line-feed characters into the Origin header to confuse the server's string-comparison logic, rather than a simple misconfiguration of the allowlist itself. No public exploit code or CISA KEV listing exists at time of analysis, but the network-accessible, zero-privilege, low-complexity nature of the flaw makes it exploitable at scale against Joomla sites where CORS is configured.
RemediationAI
Upgrade Joomla! CMS to the next patched release above 5.4.7 for the 4.x/5.x branch, or above 6.1.2 for the 6.x branch, following guidance from the official Joomla Security Centre advisory at https://developer.joomla.org/security-centre/20260802-core-improper-cors-origin-validation.html. Exact patched version numbers are not independently confirmed in the available input data beyond the advisory reference - verify the latest release via the Joomla download channel before deploying. As a compensating control when immediate patching is not possible, administrators can enforce CORS origin validation at the reverse proxy or web server layer (e.g., Apache mod_headers RemoveResponseHeader plus add_header Access-Control-Allow-Origin directives, or nginx add_header with a conditional $http_origin check), effectively bypassing the vulnerable Joomla application logic. This approach requires administrators to manually replicate the intended allowlist at the proxy layer; misconfiguration risks breaking legitimate cross-origin integrations, and the control must be re-evaluated whenever the Joomla CORS allowlist changes. Disabling CORS entirely on the server is the most conservative option if cross-origin API access is not operationally required.
Affected VersionsENISA
Affected Packages
Source: OSV (Open Source Vulnerabilities)
Affects your stack
Affects 1 package in euvd
Checking this CVE against your own stacks and servers is part of the Basic plan and up.
Technical ContextAI · show details
Joomla! CMS implements server-side CORS validation to control which external domains may receive permissive Access-Control-Allow-Origin response headers, enabling browser-mediated cross-origin API access. The vulnerability is classified under CWE-93 (Improper Neutralization of CRLF Sequences), which indicates the Origin header value is not properly sanitized before comparison against the configured allowlist - a CRLF injection in the Origin header can cause the parser to split or misinterpret the value, resulting in an unauthorized origin being accepted as permitted. The affected CPE cpe:2.3:a:joomla!_project:joomla!_cms:*:*:*:*:*:*:*:* spans both the 4.x/5.x and 6.x release branches. The CVSS 4.0 impact metrics VC:N/VI:N/VA:N (no direct impact to the vulnerable Joomla server) alongside SC:L/SI:L/SA:L (low impact to subsequent systems) are architecturally consistent with a CORS bypass, where the attacker's leverage is over resources accessed through the victim's session or via the Joomla API, not over the server itself.
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Severity by source
CVSS:4.0/AV:N/AC:L/AT:N/PR:N/UI:N/VC:N/VI:N/VA:N/SC:L/SI:L/SA:L
Network-accessible, no privileges or interaction required; scope changes to cross-origin resources (S:C) with low confidentiality and integrity impact consistent with CORS bypass.
Primary rating from Vendor (Joomla).
CVSS VectorVendor: Joomla
DescriptionCVE.org
Joomla! Core - [20260802] - Improper CORS origin validation in Joomla 4.0.0-5.4.7, 6.0.0-6.1.2 - An improper implementation prevented configured CORS origins from being properly validated in CORS requests.
Threat Intelligence Overview
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.
What every action level means
SSVC AssessmentENISA
Priority Score
Attack Technique
Information disclosure occurs when an application unintentionally exposes sensitive data that aids attackers in reconnaissance or directly compromises security.
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EUVD-2026-61034
GHSA-jm8r-mhmw-h747
NVD
CVE.org
EPSS
Vulnrichment
VulDB
Exploit-DB