CVE-2019-16097 is a medium-severity (CVSS 6.5) CWE-862 vulnerability in github.com/goharbor/harbor. 5 public exploit or proof-of-concept references are indexed, so weaponization risk is real. A fix is available for github.com/goharbor/harbor — see the affected versions and patch details below.
Missing Authorization in Harbor
EPSS Exploitation Probability
Probability of exploitation in the next 30 days, from FIRST.org EPSS.
How urgent is this, really
Where this sits among everything scored
Real-World Exposure
github.com/goharbor/harborReal-time download stats are indexed for npm and PyPI packages. This vulnerability affects Go packages — download data is not available via public APIs for these ecosystems.
Description
core/api/user.go in Harbor 1.7.0 through 1.8.2 allows non-admin users to create admin accounts via the POST /api/users API, when Harbor is setup with DB as authentication backend and allow user to do self-registration. Fixed version: v1.7.6 v1.8.3. v.1.9.0. Workaround without applying the fix: configure Harbor to use non-DB authentication backend such as LDAP.
Affected Packages
| Ecosystem | Package | Vulnerable range | Fix |
|---|---|---|---|
| 🐹Go | github.com/goharbor/harbor | ≥ 1.7.0&&< 1.9.0-rc1 | 1.9.0-rc1go get github.com/goharbor/harbor@v1.9.0-rc1 |
Affected Products
harborlinuxfoundationResearch use only. For defensive security, authorized penetration testing, and academic research only. Never execute exploit code against systems without explicit written authorization.
Detection & mitigation playbook
Open-source dependencyDetect
Scan your dependency tree (package-lock.json, pnpm-lock.yaml, requirements.txt, go.sum, etc.) for github.com/goharbor/harbor, including transitive dependencies — a direct dependency you never call can still pull in a vulnerable version.
Fix
Update github.com/goharbor/harbor to 1.9.0-rc1 or later, then make sure no transitive (indirect) dependency still pins the vulnerable range — O3 confirms CVE-2019-16097 is resolved across your whole dependency graph.
Workarounds
Put an independent control in front of the weakness: restrict the affected endpoint or interface to trusted networks, require an additional authentication factor or proxy-level check, and invalidate existing sessions and credentials in case the flaw has already been used.
How to detect CVE-2019-16097
A community-maintained Nuclei template exists for this CVE. You can scan for it directly:
nuclei -id cve-2019-16097 -u https://target- Template
- Harbor <=1.82.0 - Privilege Escalation
- Severity
- medium
- Impact
- Successful exploitation of this vulnerability could allow an attacker to escalate their privileges and gain unauthorized access to sensitive information.
- Remediation
- Upgrade to v1.7.6 v1.8.3. v.1.9.0 or higher. A potential workaround without applying the fix is to configure Harbor to use a non-DB authentication backend such as LDAP.
Template by ProjectDiscovery nuclei-templates (pikpikcu), MIT licensed. View the full template. Scan only systems you are authorised to test.
Frequently Asked Questions
Is CVE-2019-16097 in your dependencies?
Find it across Go, including transitive dependencies.