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.
CVE-2019-16097
This medium-severity CVE scores 6.5 under NVD CVSS v3. EPSS exploit probability: 23.3%, top 2% of all CVEs by exploit prediction. GitHub Security Advisory data not yet ingested — confidence will rise once GHSA publishes (typical lag: hours to days for open-source ecosystem CVEs; never for infrastructure-only CVEs).
- Lower severity and no public exploit yet
No vendor fix yet — apply a workaround or compensating control (WAF / firewall / segmentation) and watch for a patch.
- CVSS v3
- 6.5
- EG Score
- 6.5(medium)
- EG Risk
- 50(Track)EG Risk 50/100SSVC: Track
EG Risk is EchelonGraph's 0–100 priority score: it fuses intrinsic severity with real-world exploitation and automatability so you can rank equal-severity CVEs and fix the most dangerous first. Higher = act sooner. Distinct from the 0–10 EG Score (severity).
How it’s computedSeverity65% × 45%Exploitation40% × 40%Automatability30% × 15%Action: Routine — remediate on your standard cadence. - EPSS
- 97.5%
- KEV
- Not listed
Published
September 8, 2019
Last Modified
November 21, 2024
References (12)
- cve@mitrehttp://www.vmware.com/security/advisories/VMSA-2019-0015.html
- cve@mitrehttps://github.com/goharbor/harbor/commit/b6db8a8a106259ec9a2c48be8a380cb3b37cf517
- cve@mitrehttps://github.com/goharbor/harbor/compare/v1.8.2...v1.9.0-rc1
- cve@mitrehttps://github.com/goharbor/harbor/releases/tag/v1.7.6
- cve@mitrehttps://github.com/goharbor/harbor/releases/tag/v1.8.3
- cve@mitrehttps://unit42.paloaltonetworks.com/critical-vulnerability-in-harbor-enables-privilege-escalation-from-zero-to-admin-cve-2019-16097/
- af854a3a-2127-422b-91ae-364da2661108http://www.vmware.com/security/advisories/VMSA-2019-0015.html
- af854a3a-2127-422b-91ae-364da2661108https://github.com/goharbor/harbor/commit/b6db8a8a106259ec9a2c48be8a380cb3b37cf517
- af854a3a-2127-422b-91ae-364da2661108https://github.com/goharbor/harbor/compare/v1.8.2...v1.9.0-rc1
- af854a3a-2127-422b-91ae-364da2661108https://github.com/goharbor/harbor/releases/tag/v1.7.6
- af854a3a-2127-422b-91ae-364da2661108https://github.com/goharbor/harbor/releases/tag/v1.8.3
- af854a3a-2127-422b-91ae-364da2661108https://unit42.paloaltonetworks.com/critical-vulnerability-in-harbor-enables-privilege-escalation-from-zero-to-admin-cve-2019-16097/
Affected Packages
(1 across 1 ecosystem)
Go(1)
| Package | Vulnerable range | Fixed in | Dependents |
|---|---|---|---|
| github.com/goharbor/harbor | — | 1.9.0-rc1 | — |
Weakness Classification(1)
MITRE Common Weakness Enumeration — the root-cause categories this CVE belongs to.
Data Freshness Timeline
(refreshed 14× in last 7d / 44× in last 30d)
Each row is a source pipeline that fetched or updated this CVE on that date, with what changed. For example, "NVD update" means NVD published or revised its analysis for this CVE; "MITRE cvelistV5" means we ingested or refreshed it from the CNA feed. Most recent first.
- 2026-07-23 01:41 UTCEG score recompute
- 2026-07-22 22:21 UTCEG score recompute▼ 2.50
- 2026-07-22 14:05 UTCEPSS rescore
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- 2026-07-20 07:32 UTCOSV refresh
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- 2026-07-04 06:28 UTCEPSS rescore
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- 2026-07-03 01:05 UTCOSV refresh
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- 2026-06-14 19:13 UTCOSV refresh
- 2026-06-13 22:58 UTCEPSS rescore
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- 2026-06-04 13:10 UTCEPSS rescore
- 2026-06-04 13:10 UTCEPSS rescore
- 2026-05-28 13:43 UTCEPSS rescore
- 2026-05-27 14:51 UTCEG score recompute
- 2026-05-26 13:42 UTCEPSS rescore
- 2026-05-26 13:42 UTCEPSS rescore
- 2026-05-26 12:15 UTCOSV refresh
- 2026-05-26 07:17 UTCEPSS rescore
- 2026-05-26 07:17 UTCEPSS rescore
Publicly available exploits
(4 references)Working exploit code is in the public domain (3 GitHub PoCs). Defenders should treat patch urgency accordingly — public PoCs typically lead to mass-exploitation within 24-72 hours.
- GitHub PoCluckybool1020/CVE-2019-16097First seen Nov 14, 2019
Harbor 未授权创建管理员漏洞原理 docker及poc[基于pocsuite框架]
Open source ↗ - GitHub PoCrockmelodies/CVE-2019-16097-batchFirst seen Sep 20, 2019
CVE-2019-16097-batch
Open source ↗ - GitHub PoCevilAdan0s/CVE-2019-16097First seen Sep 19, 2019
CVE-2019-16097 PoC
Open source ↗ - Nucleihttp/cves/2019/CVE-2019-16097.yamlFirst seen Jan 1, 2019
Harbor <=1.82.0 - Privilege Escalation
Open source ↗
Related CVEs(same CWE)
Same CWE
10 shownCWE-862
Frequently asked(5)
What is CVE-2019-16097?
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What is the CVSS score of CVE-2019-16097?
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Dependency Blast Radius
See which npm, PyPI, Go, and Maven packages are affected by CVE-2019-16097
Is Your Infrastructure Affected by CVE-2019-16097?
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