CVE-2016-8870 in the critical feed json
The register method in the UsersModelRegistration class in controllers/user.php in the Users component in Joomla!
published 2016-11-04 10 y ago modified 2026-06-17 4 mo ago also EUVD-2016-9695
- cvss
- 8.1
- version 3.0, NVD
- cisa kev
- Not listed
- not in CISA's catalog
- epss
- 81.1%
- EPSS 81.1% chance of exploitation in 30 days, percentile 99.6%
- public exploits
- 2
- Metasploit, Exploit-DB
Summary
The register method in the UsersModelRegistration class in controllers/user.php in the Users component in Joomla! before 3.6.4, when registration has been disabled, allows remote attackers to create user accounts by leveraging failure to check the Allow User Registration configuration setting.
Patch / fix
Timeline
- First public exploit (Metasploit auxiliary/admin/http/joomla_registration_privesc)
- Published
Exploit prediction
81.14% chance of exploitation in the next 30 days, higher than 99.6% of all scored CVEs (FIRST EPSS, 2026-11-09).
Exploits and checks
- Metasploit auxiliary/admin/http/joomla_registration_privesc Joomla Account Creation and Privilege Escalation metasploit auxiliary, normal rank, 2016-10-25
- EDB-40637 Joomla! 3.4.4 < 3.6.4 - Account Creation / Privilege Escalation webapps, 2016-10-27
CVSS scores
| assigned by | version | score | vector |
|---|---|---|---|
| NVD | 3.0 | 8.1 | CVSS:3.0/AV:N/AC:H/PR:N/UI:N/S:U/C:H/I:H/A:H |
| NVD | 2.0 | 6.8 | AV:N/AC:M/Au:N/C:P/I:P/A:P |
Classification
- Weakness
-
- CWE-20 Improper Input Validation
References
-
github.com
/joomla/joomla-cms/commit/bae1d43938c878480cfd73671e4945211538fdcf
patch
-
exploit-db.com
/exploits/40637/
exploit, third-party-advisory
-
developer.joomla.org
/security-centre/659-20161001-core-account-creation.html
vendor-advisory
-
securityfocus.com
/bid/93876
vdb-entry, third-party-advisory
- blog.sucuri.net /2016/10/details-on-the-privilege-escalation-vulnerability-in-joomla.html
-
rapid7.com
/db/modules/auxiliary/admin/http/joomla_registration_privesc
third-party-advisory
-
securitytracker.com
/id/1037108
vdb-entry, third-party-advisory
-
securitytracker.com
/id/1037107
vdb-entry
- medium.com /%40showthread/joomla-3-6-4-account-creation-elevated-privileges-write-up-and-exploit-965d8fb46fa2#.rq4qh1v4r
Sources
- CVE List CVE-2016-8870
- NVD CVE-2016-8870
Fencer Intel keeps one entry per vulnerability: the CVE id wins, then GHSA, and records that alias each other are merged, except that two CVEs always keep separate entries. The same data is available as JSON.