How severe is CVE-2015-8562?

No CVSS score has been assigned to CVE-2015-8562 yet. Review the advisory details and affected package list to assess your exposure.

Which products are affected by CVE-2015-8562?

CVE-2015-8562 affects the following products: joomla joomla\!.

How do I patch CVE-2015-8562?

No patch has shipped for CVE-2015-8562 yet — track the joomla joomla\! advisory for a fixed release and apply the workarounds below in the meantime.

How do I detect CVE-2015-8562 across my infrastructure?

Inventory every joomla joomla\! deployment and check each version against the affected-products list above.

How do I mitigate CVE-2015-8562 if there is no patch (or I can't update yet)?

If you can't upgrade right away: gate or disable the affected feature, validate untrusted input at the boundary, and avoid passing attacker-controlled data into the vulnerable path. O3's runtime protection blocks exploitation in production as an interim safeguard until the upgrade lands. Alongside that, restrict the management interface to trusted networks and apply the vendor's recommended configuration mitigations.

Is CVE-2015-8562 actively exploited in the wild?

Yes. There are 14 known exploit references for CVE-2015-8562, including 2 documented proof-of-concept exploits on Exploit-DB and 9 in-the-wild exploitations observed on GitHub and other sources. Treat this as actively exploitable and prioritize patching immediately. All exploit code should only be run in an isolated sandbox environment for research or authorized testing — never against production systems without explicit written authorization.

What is the EPSS score for CVE-2015-8562?

CVE-2015-8562 has an EPSS (Exploit Prediction Scoring System) score of 98.3%, placing it in the 100th percentile of all CVEs. EPSS is maintained by FIRST.org and estimates the probability that a vulnerability will be exploited in the wild within the next 30 days. A score above 50% indicates significantly elevated exploitation risk — immediate patching is strongly recommended.

What type of vulnerability is CVE-2015-8562?

CVE-2015-8562 is classified as Improper Input Validation (CWE-20). This weakness type describe the underlying flaw category, which helps determine the potential impact and the right class of mitigation.

Which products and versions are affected by CVE-2015-8562?

CVE-2015-8562 affects joomla joomla\! (95 versions, e.g. 1.5.0, 1.5.1, 1.5.2…). Check the affected-products list on this page against your deployed version to confirm exposure.

Is there exploit tooling available for CVE-2015-8562?

A Nuclei detection template exists for CVE-2015-8562, meaning automated scanners can fingerprint it. Public exploit tooling significantly increases real-world risk — prioritize patching and ensure detection coverage. Exploit tooling should only ever be used in isolated, authorized testing environments.

When was CVE-2015-8562 published, and has it been updated?

CVE-2015-8562 was published on December 16, 2015 and was last updated on June 17, 2026. Advisory data evolves as severity scores, affected ranges, and exploit intelligence are revised — always check the latest version of the advisory before acting.

Not in CISA KEV

CVE-2015-8562 — Joomla\!

CVE-2015-8562 is a Improper Input Validation vulnerability in joomla joomla\!. 14 public exploit references exist, so weaponization risk is real. No vendor fix is recorded yet; mitigation options are listed below.

Joomla! 1.5.x, 2.x, and 3.x before 3.4.6 allow remote attackers to conduct PHP object injection attacks and execute arbitrary PHP code via the HTTP User-Agent header, as exploited in…

Published

Dec 16, 2015

Updated

Jun 17, 2026

Affected

1 product

Patched

See advisory

Exploits

14 known

Exploitation data as of Oct 21, 2026 · OSV.dev, NVD, FIRST.org (EPSS)

EPSS Exploitation Probability

via FIRST.org ↗

98.3%probability of exploitation in next 30 days

Very High Risk0.00%

Lower risk than most CVEs100th percentile — riskier than 100% of all scored CVEsHighest risk

Probability of exploitation in the next 30 days, from FIRST.org EPSS.

Description

Joomla! 1.5.x, 2.x, and 3.x before 3.4.6 allow remote attackers to conduct PHP object injection attacks and execute arbitrary PHP code via the HTTP User-Agent header, as exploited in the wild in December 2015.

Affected Products

1 product · 95 configurations

Application

joomla\!joomla

95 versions

1.5.01.5.11.5.21.5.31.5.41.5.61.5.71.5.81.5.91.5.101.5.111.5.12

Exploits & PoCs

Research use only. For defensive security, authorized penetration testing, and academic research only. Never execute exploit code against systems without explicit written authorization.

EDB-39033webappsphp

Joomla! 1.5 < 3.4.6 - Object Injection 'x-forwarded-for' Header Remote Code Execution

by Andrew McNicol · Dec 18, 2015

Exploit-DB Source

EDB-38977webappsphp✓ Verified

Joomla! 1.5 < 3.4.5 - Object Injection Remote Command Execution

by Sec-1 · Dec 15, 2015

Exploit-DB Source

Detection & mitigation playbook

Vendor / appliance

Detect
Inventory every joomla joomla\! deployment and check each version against the affected-products list above.
Remediation status
No patch has shipped for CVE-2015-8562 yet — track the joomla joomla\! advisory for a fixed release and apply the workarounds below in the meantime.
Mitigate without a patch
If you can't upgrade right away: gate or disable the affected feature, validate untrusted input at the boundary, and avoid passing attacker-controlled data into the vulnerable path. O3's runtime protection blocks exploitation in production as an interim safeguard until the upgrade lands. Alongside that, restrict the management interface to trusted networks and apply the vendor's recommended configuration mitigations.

How to detect CVE-2015-8562

A community-maintained Nuclei template exists for this CVE. You can scan for it directly:

nuclei -id cve-2015-8562 -u https://target

Template: Joomla HTTP Header Unauthenticated - Remote Code Execution
Severity: high
Impact: Attackers can execute arbitrary PHP code on the server through PHP object injection, leading to complete server compromise and potential data breach.
Remediation: Update to Joomla 3.4.6 or later immediately.

Template by ProjectDiscovery nuclei-templates (kairos-hk, bolkv, n0ming), MIT licensed. View the full template. Scan only systems you are authorised to test.

Frequently Asked Questions

O3 Security · Runtime Protection

Is CVE-2015-8562 being exploited in your environment?

Detect and block the exploit chain at execution, on systems you cannot patch yet.

Protect my workloads How runtime protection works