CVE-2025-12819
📋 TL;DR
This vulnerability allows unauthenticated attackers to execute arbitrary SQL commands during PgBouncer authentication by manipulating the search_path parameter. It affects all PgBouncer instances before version 1.25.1 that accept connections from untrusted networks. Attackers can potentially gain unauthorized database access or execute malicious SQL.
💻 Affected Systems
- PgBouncer
📦 What is this software?
Pgbouncer by Pgbouncer
⚠️ Risk & Real-World Impact
Worst Case
Complete database compromise including data theft, modification, or deletion, and potential privilege escalation to underlying database systems.
Likely Case
Unauthorized SQL execution leading to data exfiltration, authentication bypass, or denial of service against the database.
If Mitigated
Limited impact if network access controls restrict connections to trusted sources only, preventing external exploitation.
🎯 Exploit Status
Exploitation requires sending a malicious StartupMessage with crafted search_path parameter during authentication phase.
🛠️ Fix & Mitigation
✅ Official Fix
Patch Version: 1.25.1
Vendor Advisory: https://www.pgbouncer.org/changelog.html#pgbouncer-125x
Restart Required: Yes
Instructions:
1. Download PgBouncer 1.25.1 or later from official sources. 2. Stop the PgBouncer service. 3. Install the updated version. 4. Restart the PgBouncer service. 5. Verify the version is 1.25.1 or higher.
🔧 Temporary Workarounds
Network Access Restriction
linuxRestrict PgBouncer connections to trusted IP addresses only using firewall rules or PgBouncer's listen_addr configuration.
iptables -A INPUT -p tcp --dport 6432 -s trusted_ip_range -j ACCEPT
iptables -A INPUT -p tcp --dport 6432 -j DROP
🧯 If You Can't Patch
- Implement strict network segmentation to isolate PgBouncer from untrusted networks
- Monitor authentication logs for unusual search_path parameters or failed authentication attempts
🔍 How to Verify
Check if Vulnerable:
Check PgBouncer version: if version is below 1.25.1, the system is vulnerable.Check Version:
pgbouncer --versionVerify Fix Applied:
Confirm PgBouncer version is 1.25.1 or higher and restart service to ensure patch is active.📡 Detection & Monitoring
Log Indicators:
- Unusual authentication failures
- Unexpected search_path parameters in connection logs
- SQL errors during authentication phase
Network Indicators:
- Connection attempts with malformed StartupMessage packets
- Authentication requests from unexpected sources
SIEM Query:
source="pgbouncer.log" AND ("authentication failure" OR "search_path" OR "StartupMessage")