How severe is CVE-2019-16759?

CVE-2019-16759 has a CVSS score of 9.8/10, rated CRITICAL. Immediate patching is strongly recommended.

Which packages are affected by CVE-2019-16759?

Affected package information for CVE-2019-16759 is not yet fully mapped. Check the official advisory links for details.

How do I fix CVE-2019-16759?

No fixed version has been published for CVE-2019-16759 yet. Monitor the advisory for updates, apply mitigations recommended by the vendor, and use O3 Security to track when a fix becomes available in your stack.

Is CVE-2019-16759 actively exploited in the wild?

Yes. There are 30 known exploit references for CVE-2019-16759, including 2 documented proof-of-concept exploits on Exploit-DB and 20 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-2019-16759?

CVE-2019-16759 has an EPSS (Exploit Prediction Scoring System) score of 94.4%, 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 CVE-2019-16759 in the CISA Known Exploited Vulnerabilities catalog?

Yes. CVE-2019-16759 (vBulletin PHP Module Remote Code Execution Vulnerability) was added to CISA's Known Exploited Vulnerabilities (KEV) catalog on 2021-11-03. CISA required all US federal civilian agencies to remediate this vulnerability by 2022-05-03. The required action was: Apply updates per vendor instructions. Being listed in the KEV catalog is the strongest possible confirmation of active exploitation — treat this as a critical priority.

What type of vulnerability is CVE-2019-16759?

CVE-2019-16759 is classified as Code Injection (CWE-94). This weakness type describe the underlying flaw category, which helps determine the potential impact and the right class of mitigation. This is a high-impact weakness class that often enables remote code execution or data exposure.

Which products and versions are affected by CVE-2019-16759?

CVE-2019-16759 affects vbulletin vbulletin. Check the affected-products list on this page against your deployed version to confirm exposure.

Is there exploit tooling available for CVE-2019-16759?

A Nuclei detection template exists for CVE-2019-16759, 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-2019-16759 published, and has it been updated?

CVE-2019-16759 was published on September 24, 2019 and was last updated on November 7, 2025. Advisory data evolves as severity scores, affected ranges, and exploit intelligence are revised — always check the latest version of the advisory before acting.

CISA KEV·Added 2021-11-03 — agencies required to remediate by 2022-05-03

CVE-2019-16759

CRITICAL

vBulletin 5.x through 5.5.4 allows remote command execution via the widgetConfig[code] parameter in an ajax/render/widget_php routestring request.

Published

Sep 24, 2019

Updated

Nov 7, 2025

Affected

0 pkgs

Patched

None yet

Exploits

30 known

EPSS Exploitation Probability

via FIRST.org ↗

94.4%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.

Description

vBulletin 5.x through 5.5.4 allows remote command execution via the widgetConfig[code] parameter in an ajax/render/widget_php routestring request.

Affected Products

1 product · 1 configurations

Application

vbulletinvbulletin

≥ 5.0.0 && ≤ 5.5.4

range

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-47447webappsphp

vBulletin 5.0 < 5.5.4 - 'widget_php ' Unauthenticated Remote Code Execution

by anonymous · Sep 23, 2019

Exploit-DB Source

EDB-47437webappsphp

vBulletin 5.x - Remote Command Execution (Metasploit)

by r00tpgp · Sep 30, 2019

Exploit-DB Source

Frequently Asked Questions

vBulletin 5.x through 5.5.4 allows remote command execution via the widgetConfig[code] parameter in an ajax/render/widget_php routestring request.

O3 Security · Impact-Aware SCA

Is CVE-2019-16759 in your stack?

O3 detects CVE-2019-16759 across 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