Grav vulnerable to Privilege Escalation in Grav Admin: Missing Username Uniqueness Check Allows Admin Account Takeover
Summary
A privilege escalation vulnerability exists in Grav’s Admin plugin due to the absence of username uniqueness validation when creating users. A user with the create user permission can create a new account using the same username as an existing administrator account, set a new password/email, and then log in as that administrator. This effectively allows privilege escalation from limited user-manager permissions to full administrator access.
Steps to Reproduce
- Make sure you have two accounts: an admin and a user with create user privilege
- In the user account, navigate to /grav-admin/admin/accounts/users and click "Add"
- Enter the name of the admin, complete registration and observe that the existing admin’s email is changed to the value you provided.
- Log out from user account log in as admin with new credentials
Impact
- Full admin takeover by any user with create user permission.
- Ability to change admin credentials, install/remove plugins, read or modify site data, and execute any action available to an admin.
- Severity: High/Critical.
PoC
https://github.com/user-attachments/assets/3ab0a7d6-5055-41be-9e0e-2bd6ca359b37
Affected software
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| Platform | Package | Vulnerable versions | Fixed in |
|---|---|---|---|
| Composer package | getgrav/grav | < 1.8.0-beta.27 | 1.8.0-beta.27 |
References
- CVSS vector
CVSS:3.1/AV:N/AC:L/PR:L/UI:N/S:U/C:H/I:H/A:H- Weakness (CWE)
CWE-266- Platform
- Composer
- Package
getgrav/grav- Disclosed
- 02.12.2025
- Updated
- 11.10.2026 10:22
Sources and licenses
OSV / GitHub Advisory Database - GHSA-cjcp-qxvg-4rjm - CC BY 4.0
Vulnerability history: getgrav/grav
All published vulnerabilities of this package (Composer package), newest first. Shows whether this is a one-off slip or a package that needs watching.
- Total entries
- 99
- First → latest
- 11.2019 09.2026
- Without a fix
- 6
- Exploited in attacks
- 0
Severity breakdown
- Critical 7
- High 47
- Medium 41
- Low 4
Disclosures per year
- 2019: 1
- 2020: 1
- 2021: 4
- 2022: 10
- 2023: 5
- 2024: 8
- 2025: 23
- 2026: 47
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Grav vulnerable to Privilege Escalation in Grav Admin: Missing Username Uniqueness Check Allows Admin Account Takeover this entry
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