CVE-2022-36066 | Discourse vulnerable to RCE via admins uploading maliciously zipped file

Discourse is an open source discussion platform. In versions prior to 2.8.9 on the `stable` branch and prior to 2.9.0.beta10 on the `beta` and `tests-passed` branches, admins can upload a maliciously crafted Zip or Gzip Tar archive to write files at arbitrary locations and trigger remote code execution. The problem is patched in version 2.8.9 on the `stable` branch and version 2.9.0.beta10 on the `beta` and `tests-passed` branches. There are no known workarounds.

Published: 2022-09-29 Last update: 2026-06-17 Assigner: [email protected] Source: [email protected]
NVD Status：Modified，CVE State: published
View at NVD, CVE.org, EUVD

CVE-2022-36066 is rated Moderate Risk (59.9/100): CVSS Critical severity, with medium exploitation likelihood (EPSS 1.57%). Review affected assets and schedule remediation.

Risk is dynamic; we continuously reassess and refresh what is shown on this page as upstream context changes.

Exploit prediction scoring system (EPSS) score for CVE-2022-36066

EPSS lead: Daily EPSS estimates relative likelihood of exploitation; percentile ranks this CVE among scored vulnerabilities (higher = more severe relative rank).

# Date Old EPSS score New EPSS score Delta (New - Old)
1 2026-06-15 3.27% 1.57% -1.70%
2 2026-03-22 3.56% 3.27% -0.29%
3 2025-11-21 — 3.56% —

Full EPSS history (23 records total)

Common vulnerability scoring system (CVSS) metrics for CVE-2022-36066

CVSS metrics for this CVE.

Base score Version Severity Vector Exploitability Impact Score source
9.1 3.1 CRITICAL
CVSS:3.1/AV:N/AC:L/PR:H/UI:N/S:C/C:H/I:H/A:H Click to expand
Attack vector (AV:N)
Could be attacked over the internet or any normal routed network—not just someone sitting at the machine.
Attack complexity (AC:L)
Once they can reach the bug, pulling it off is straightforward—no weird race conditions or rare setup.
Privileges required (PR:H)
They need powerful rights—admin, root, or similar—before this pays off.
User interaction (UI:N)
Nobody has to click “OK” or open a trap file; it can work without a victim helping.
Scope (S:C)
Breaking this can reach past the original component and bite other resources—bigger blast radius.
Confidentiality (C:H)
Serious risk that confidential data gets exposed in a big way.
Integrity (I:H)
They could widely tamper with or forge data—trust in the data is badly hurt.
Availability (A:H)
Could take the service down hard or make it unusable for people who depend on it.
 2.3 6.0 [email protected]
7.2 3.1 HIGH
CVSS:3.1/AV:N/AC:L/PR:H/UI:N/S:U/C:H/I:H/A:H Click to expand
Attack vector (AV:N)
Could be attacked over the internet or any normal routed network—not just someone sitting at the machine.
Attack complexity (AC:L)
Once they can reach the bug, pulling it off is straightforward—no weird race conditions or rare setup.
Privileges required (PR:H)
They need powerful rights—admin, root, or similar—before this pays off.
User interaction (UI:N)
Nobody has to click “OK” or open a trap file; it can work without a victim helping.
Scope (S:U)
Damage stays in the same “trust bubble” as the broken component—no big spill into unrelated systems.
Confidentiality (C:H)
Serious risk that confidential data gets exposed in a big way.
Integrity (I:H)
They could widely tamper with or forge data—trust in the data is badly hurt.
Availability (A:H)
Could take the service down hard or make it unusable for people who depend on it.
 1.2 5.9 [email protected]

Weakness enumeration for CVE-2022-36066

Affected software / configurations for CVE-2022-36066

Vendor Product Version Raw CPE
discourse discourse < 2.8.9 cpe:2.3:a:discourse:discourse:*:*:*:*:*:*:*:*
discourse discourse 2.9.0 cpe:2.3:a:discourse:discourse:2.9.0:beta1:*:*:*:*:*:*
discourse discourse 2.9.0 cpe:2.3:a:discourse:discourse:2.9.0:beta2:*:*:*:*:*:*
discourse discourse 2.9.0 cpe:2.3:a:discourse:discourse:2.9.0:beta3:*:*:*:*:*:*
discourse discourse 2.9.0 cpe:2.3:a:discourse:discourse:2.9.0:beta4:*:*:*:*:*:*
discourse discourse 2.9.0 cpe:2.3:a:discourse:discourse:2.9.0:beta5:*:*:*:*:*:*
discourse discourse 2.9.0 cpe:2.3:a:discourse:discourse:2.9.0:beta6:*:*:*:*:*:*
discourse discourse 2.9.0 cpe:2.3:a:discourse:discourse:2.9.0:beta7:*:*:*:*:*:*
discourse discourse 2.9.0 cpe:2.3:a:discourse:discourse:2.9.0:beta8:*:*:*:*:*:*
discourse discourse 2.9.0 cpe:2.3:a:discourse:discourse:2.9.0:beta9:*:*:*:*:*:*

References for CVE-2022-36066

cvelogic Threat Intelligence