CVE-2025-54477VulnerabilityPublished 30 Sep 2025

CVE-2025-54477: Joomla! CMS · Observable Discrepancy

Affects Joomla! CMSSource CVE Database V5

Not known to be exploited · CVSS 5.3 Medium.

Data as of 26 Oct 2026, 07:57 UTC

CVSS 3.1 base score

5.3Medium

How severe the flaw is on the 0–10 CVSS scale.

EPSS: 0.2% chance of exploitation in 30 days – higher than 19% of CVEsExploit Prediction Scoring System: the likelihood attackers will use this flaw soon.

CVSS:3.1/AV:N/AC:L/PR:N/UI:N/S:U/C:L/I:N/A:N

Attack Vector: Network
Attack Complexity: Low
Privileges Required: None
User Interaction: None
Scope: Unchanged
Confidentiality: Low
Integrity: None
Availability: None

Bold values are the worst case: easiest to exploit or largest impact.

Attack Vector: Network: The vulnerable component is bound to the network stack and the set of possible attackers extends beyond the other options listed, up to and including the entire Internet. Such a vulnerability is often termed 'remotely exploitable' and can be thought of as an attack being exploitable at the protocol level one or more network hops away (e.g., across one or more routers).
Attack Complexity: Low: Specialized access conditions or extenuating circumstances do not exist. An attacker can expect repeatable success against the vulnerable component.
Privileges Required: None: The attacker is unauthorized prior to attack, and therefore does not require any access to settings or files to carry out an attack.
User Interaction: None: The vulnerable system can be exploited without any interaction from any user.
Scope: Unchanged: An exploited vulnerability can only affect resources managed by the same security authority. In this case, the vulnerable component and the impacted component are either the same, or both are managed by the same security authority.
Confidentiality: Low: There is some loss of confidentiality. Access to some restricted information is obtained, but the attacker does not have control over what information is obtained, or the amount or kind of loss is limited. The information disclosure does not cause a direct, serious loss to the impacted component.
Integrity: None: There is no loss of integrity within the impacted component.
Availability: None: There is no impact to availability within the impacted component.

Definitions: FIRST CVSS v3.1 specification.

Exploitation evidence

Disclosed: evidence found.
CVE published 30 Sep 2025
Detectable: no evidence on record.
No public nuclei template indexed
Weaponised: no evidence on record.
No public exploit code indexed in Metasploit or Exploit-DB
Exploited in the wildExploited: no evidence on record.
Not in CISA KEV and no source reports exploitation
Observed by OffSeq MirageSeen by Mirage: no evidence on record.
No attack traffic recorded by OffSeq Mirage sensors

A missing step is not evidence of safety. Sources: cve.org (opens in a new tab), the Metasploit, Exploit-DB and nuclei-templates index as of 2026-10-26.

Disclosed: The CVE record is public on cve.org. Its publication is t = 0.
Detectable: A public nuclei template can find exposed instances, for defenders and attackers alike.
Weaponised: Public exploit code exists in Metasploit or Exploit-DB, or CISA SSVC reports a public proof of concept.
Exploited in the wild: CISA KEV lists it, CISA SSVC rates exploitation active, or a source reports attacks.
Observed by OffSeq Mirage: OffSeq Mirage honeypot sensors recorded attack traffic for this CVE, or found exposed hosts without attack traffic.

Moments are spaced evenly, not to scale; a dashed line marks a gap of six months or more. Deltas count from t = 0. Sources that give only a date (CISA KEV, Exploit-DB, or a time of exactly 00:00Z) read “same day” rather than hours. Metasploit modules carry the flaw’s disclosure date, not their release date, and nuclei templates carry no date, so both appear above but not on the timeline.

What to do

Affected software

Product	Affected	Fixed in
Joomla! Project Joomla! CMS	Affected =4.0.0-4.4.13 =5.0.0-5.3.3	Fixed in–

AI-suggested

1. Immediate mitigation should include monitoring authentication logs for unusual or repeated failed login attempts that could indicate enumeration attempts. 2. Implement rate limiting and account lockout policies on authentication endpoints to reduce the feasibility of enumeration and brute force attacks. 3. Employ web application firewalls (WAFs) with rules designed to detect and block suspicious authentication request patterns targeting the passkey method. 4. Where possible, disable or restrict the passkey authentication method temporarily until a patch is available, especially if it is not widely used within the organization. 5. Encourage users to enable multi-factor authentication (MFA) to mitigate risks from compromised credentials. 6. Keep Joomla! CMS installations updated and monitor the Joomla! Project’s official channels for patches or security advisories addressing this vulnerability. 7. Conduct internal security assessments and penetration tests focusing on authentication mechanisms to identify and remediate similar issues proactively. 8. Educate users about phishing risks, as user enumeration can facilitate targeted social engineering attacks.

Description

Improper handling of authentication requests lead to a user enumeration vector in the passkey authentication method.

Impact

For European organizations relying on Joomla! CMS, this vulnerability poses a moderate to high risk. User enumeration can facilitate targeted attacks against valid users, increasing the likelihood of successful credential compromise or account takeover. This is particularly critical for organizations handling sensitive data, such as government agencies, financial institutions, healthcare providers, and e-commerce platforms. The exposure of valid usernames can also aid attackers in crafting convincing phishing campaigns tailored to specific users or departments. Additionally, if attackers combine this vulnerability with other weaknesses, they could escalate their access or disrupt services. Although the vulnerability itself does not directly allow unauthorized access or code execution, it undermines the confidentiality and integrity of authentication processes. European organizations with public-facing Joomla! websites or intranet portals are especially vulnerable, as attackers can probe authentication endpoints remotely without authentication or user interaction. The absence of known exploits in the wild currently reduces immediate risk but does not eliminate the threat, as attackers may develop exploits once the vulnerability details become widely known.

CWE-203Observable Discrepancy (opens in a new tab)
Base weakness
The product behaves differently or sends different responses under different circumstances in a way that is observable to an unauthorized actor.
Architecture and Design · Separation of Privilege
Compartmentalize the system to have "safe" areas where trust boundaries can be unambiguously drawn. Do not allow sensitive data to go outside of the trust boundary and always be careful when interfacing with a compartment outside of the safe area.
Implementation
Ensure that error messages only contain minimal details that are useful to the intended audience and no one else. The messages need to strike the balance between being too cryptic (which can confuse users) or being too detailed (which may reveal more than intended).
OWASP Cheat Sheets
Error Handling (opens in a new tab)
Logging (opens in a new tab)
OWASP ASVS 4.0.3
V8.3.4 (opens in a new tab)
V14.3.3 (opens in a new tab)
V7.3.3 (opens in a new tab)
Attack patterns
Black Box Reverse Engineering (opens in a new tab)
From MITRE CWE, MITRE CAPEC and OWASP (Top 10, OpenCRE).

References

developer.joomla.org/security-centre/1011-20250902-core-user-enumeration-in-passkey-authentication-method.html (opens in a new tab)

Community reviews

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Exploitation evidence

What to do

Affected software

Description

AI analysisMachine-generated, updated 30 Sep 2025, 16:07 UTC

WeaknessesCWE-203

Technical details

References

Community reviews

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