How severe is CVE-2019-16097?

CVE-2019-16097 has a CVSS score of 6.5/10, rated MEDIUM. Review your exposure and patch according to your risk tolerance.

Which packages are affected by CVE-2019-16097?

CVE-2019-16097 affects the following packages: github.com/goharbor/harbor (Go). Ecosystems affected: Go.

How do I fix CVE-2019-16097?

Update github.com/goharbor/harbor to version 1.9.0-rc1 or later. Run your dependency manager's update command and verify no transitive dependencies pin the vulnerable version. Use O3 Security's SCA scanner to confirm the fix is applied across your entire dependency tree.

Is CVE-2019-16097 actively exploited in the wild?

Yes. There are 5 known exploit references for CVE-2019-16097, including 3 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-2019-16097?

CVE-2019-16097 has an EPSS (Exploit Prediction Scoring System) score of 93.6%, 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.

Is there exploit tooling available for CVE-2019-16097?

A Nuclei detection template exists for CVE-2019-16097, 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-2019-16097 published, and has it been updated?

CVE-2019-16097 was published on September 8, 2019 and was last updated on April 10, 2026. Advisory data evolves as severity scores, affected ranges, and exploit intelligence are revised — always check the latest version of the advisory before acting.

🐹 Go

CVE-2019-16097

MEDIUM

Missing Authorization in Harbor

Also known asGHSA-9wvh-ff5f-xjpjGO-2022-0818

Published

Sep 8, 2019

Updated

Apr 10, 2026

Affected

1 pkg

Patched

1 / 1

Exploits

5 known

EPSS Exploitation Probability

via FIRST.org ↗

93.6%probability of exploitation in next 30 days

Very High Risk100th percentile0.00%

EPSS (Exploit Prediction Scoring System) is a daily probability model maintained by FIRST.org. It estimates the likelihood a CVE will be exploited in production environments within the next 30 days, derived from real-world threat intelligence signals.

Blast Radius

1 pkg affected

🐹github.com/goharbor/harbor

Real-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

1 total 1 fixed

Ecosystem	Package	Vulnerable range	Fix
🐹Go	`github.com/goharbor/harbor`	≥ 1.7.0&&< 1.9.0-rc1	1.9.0-rc1

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.

core/api/user.go in Harbor 1.7.0 through 1.8.2 allows non-admin users to…

github.comGithubSep 2019

core/api/user.go in Harbor 1.7.0 through 1.8.2 allows non-admin users to…

github.comGithubSep 2019

core/api/user.go in Harbor 1.7.0 through 1.8.2 allows non-admin users to…

github.comGithubNov 2019

Frequently Asked Questions

O3 Security · Impact-Aware SCA

Is CVE-2019-16097 in your stack?

O3 detects CVE-2019-16097 across Go dependencies and uses function-level reachability to confirm whether the vulnerable code path is actually reachable — not just present. No false positives.

Scan my stack How O3 SCA works