CVE-2023-36845

CRITICAL KEV NUCLEI

Juniper Junos OS Multiple Versions - Unauthenticated Remote Code Execution via PHPRC

Title source: llm
STIX 2.1

Exploitation Summary

CVE-2023-36845 is actively exploited and listed in the CISA Known Exploited Vulnerabilities (KEV) catalog, added November 13, 2023. EIP tracks 23 public exploits from researchers including vulncheck-oss, kljunowsky, Asbawy, including a Metasploit module exploits/freebsd/http/junos_phprc_auto_prepend_file. A Nuclei detection template is also available.

AI-analyzed exploit summary This repository contains a scanner for CVE-2023-36845, a vulnerability in Juniper firewalls. It verifies targets by checking for specific Juniper web interface titles and favicon, then attempts exploitation by sending an LD_PRELOAD environment variable to trigger an error response from vulnerable systems.

Description

A PHP External Variable Modification vulnerability in J-Web of Juniper Networks Junos OS on EX Series and SRX Series allows an unauthenticated, network-based attacker to remotely execute code. Using a crafted request which sets the variable PHPRC an attacker is able to modify the PHP execution environment allowing the injection und execution of code. This issue affects Juniper Networks Junos OS on EX Series and SRX Series: * All versions prior to 20.4R3-S9; * 21.1 versions 21.1R1 and later; * 21.2 versions prior to 21.2R3-S7; * 21.3 versions prior to 21.3R3-S5; * 21.4 versions prior to 21.4R3-S5; * 22.1 versions prior to 22.1R3-S4; * 22.2 versions prior to 22.2R3-S2; * 22.3 versions prior to 22.3R2-S2, 22.3R3-S1; * 22.4 versions prior to 22.4R2-S1, 22.4R3; * 23.2 versions prior to 23.2R1-S1, 23.2R2.

Exploits (23)

nomisec SCANNER 62 stars
by vulncheck-oss · local
https://github.com/vulncheck-oss/cve-2023-36845-scanner

This repository contains a scanner for CVE-2023-36845, a vulnerability in Juniper firewalls. It verifies targets by checking for specific Juniper web interface titles and favicon, then attempts exploitation by sending an LD_PRELOAD environment variable to trigger an error response from vulnerable systems.

Classification
Scanner 100%
Attack Type
Info Leak
Complexity
Trivial
Reliability
Reliable
Target: Juniper Junos OS
No auth needed
Prerequisites: Network access to the target Juniper firewall
devstral-2 · analyzed Feb 16, 2026 Full analysis →
nomisec WORKING POC 54 stars
by kljunowsky · infoleak
https://github.com/kljunowsky/CVE-2023-36845

The repository contains a Python script and README detailing CVE-2023-36845, a PHP environment variable manipulation vulnerability in Juniper SRX firewalls and EX switches. The PoC demonstrates remote code execution via PHP configuration manipulation and file upload techniques.

Classification
Working Poc 90%
Attack Type
Rce
Complexity
Moderate
Reliability
Reliable
Target: Juniper SRX firewalls and EX switches
No auth needed
Prerequisites: Target must be running vulnerable Juniper software · Network access to the target
devstral-2 · analyzed Feb 16, 2026 Full analysis →
nomisec SCANNER 19 stars
by Asbawy · infoleak
https://github.com/Asbawy/Automation-for-Juniper-cve-2023-36845

This repository contains a bash script that automates the detection of CVE-2023-36845 by sending crafted HTTP requests to a list of IP addresses and checking for the presence of '/etc/passwd' content in the response. It does not exploit the vulnerability but scans for its presence.

Classification
Scanner 90%
Attack Type
Info Leak
Complexity
Trivial
Reliability
Reliable
Target: Juniper Networks devices (specific version not specified)
No auth needed
Prerequisites: List of target IP addresses · Network access to target devices
devstral-2 · analyzed Feb 16, 2026 Full analysis →
nomisec SCANNER 5 stars
by ak1t4 · remote
https://github.com/ak1t4/CVE-2023-36845

This is a bash script designed to scan for CVE-2023-36845, a vulnerability in Juniper devices. It checks for the presence of the vulnerability by sending a crafted request to the target URL and analyzing the response for indicators of vulnerability, such as the presence of 'root:' in the output.

Classification
Scanner 90%
Attack Type
Info Leak
Complexity
Trivial
Reliability
Reliable
Target: Juniper devices (specific version not specified)
No auth needed
Prerequisites: List of target URLs
devstral-2 · analyzed Feb 16, 2026 Full analysis →
nomisec WORKING POC 4 stars
by cyberh3als · remote
https://github.com/cyberh3als/CVE-2023-36845-POC

This PoC automates the exploitation of CVE-2023-36845 by sending crafted HTTP requests to modify the PHPRC variable in J-Web, leading to potential code injection. It reads targets from a file and uses concurrent requests for efficiency.

Classification
Working Poc 95%
Attack Type
Rce
Complexity
Trivial
Reliability
Reliable
Target: Juniper Networks Junos OS J-Web (EX and SRX Series)
No auth needed
Prerequisites: Python 3.x · requests library · list of target hosts in hosts.txt
devstral-2 · analyzed Feb 16, 2026 Full analysis →
nomisec SCANNER 3 stars
by zaenhaxor · infoleak
https://github.com/zaenhaxor/CVE-2023-36845

This repository contains a bash script that scans for CVE-2023-36845, a pre-authentication RCE vulnerability in Juniper J-Web. The script checks for vulnerability by attempting to read /etc/passwd via a crafted HTTP request.

Classification
Scanner 90%
Attack Type
Rce
Complexity
Trivial
Reliability
Reliable
Target: Juniper J-Web (Junos OS SRX Series and EX Series)
No auth needed
Prerequisites: List of target IPs/hosts in a text file
devstral-2 · analyzed Feb 16, 2026 Full analysis →
github WORKING POC 2 stars
by Pr0t0c01 · pythonpoc
https://github.com/Pr0t0c01/CVEs/tree/main/Juniper_CVE-2023-36845

The repository contains functional exploit code for CVE-2023-36845, including a Nuclei template and a Python script for Citrix Gateway information disclosure. The PoC demonstrates the vulnerability by leaking sensitive information.

Classification
Working Poc 95%
Attack Type
Info Leak
Complexity
Trivial
Reliability
Reliable
Target: Citrix Gateway
No auth needed
Prerequisites: Network access to the target Citrix Gateway
devstral-2 · analyzed Feb 27, 2026 Full analysis →
nomisec SCANNER 1 stars
by e11i0t4lders0n · poc
https://github.com/e11i0t4lders0n/CVE-2023-36845

This repository contains a bash script that automates the discovery of Juniper Web Device Manager instances vulnerable to CVE-2023-36845 using Shodan, httpx, and nuclei. It does not include an exploit payload but rather a workflow to identify potential targets.

Classification
Scanner 90%
Attack Type
Info Leak
Complexity
Moderate
Reliability
Theoretical
Target: Juniper Networks Junos OS on EX Series and SRX Series (J-Web)
No auth needed
Prerequisites: Shodan API key · httpx · nuclei · nuclei template for CVE-2023-36845
devstral-2 · analyzed Feb 16, 2026 Full analysis →
nomisec SCANNER 1 stars
by jahithoque · remote
https://github.com/jahithoque/Juniper-CVE-2023-36845-Mass-Hunting

This repository contains a bash script to check for CVE-2023-36845 vulnerability in Juniper devices by attempting to read /etc/passwd via PHP auto_prepend_file manipulation. It automates the process of scanning multiple IPs for vulnerability detection.

Classification
Scanner 90%
Attack Type
Info Leak
Complexity
Trivial
Reliability
Reliable
Target: Juniper Networks devices (specific version not specified)
No auth needed
Prerequisites: List of target IPs · Network access to target devices
devstral-2 · analyzed Feb 16, 2026 Full analysis →
nomisec SCANNER 1 stars
by simrotion13 · infoleak
https://github.com/simrotion13/CVE-2023-36845

This repository contains a one-liner bash script to mass-check for CVE-2023-36845, a vulnerability in PHP's CGI argument injection. It attempts to read /etc/passwd by manipulating the PHPRC environment variable and auto_prepend_file directive.

Classification
Scanner 90%
Attack Type
Info Leak
Complexity
Trivial
Reliability
Reliable
Target: PHP (CGI mode)
No auth needed
Prerequisites: List of target IPs/hosts in ip.txt · PHP running in CGI mode on target
devstral-2 · analyzed Feb 16, 2026 Full analysis →
nomisec SCANNER 1 stars
by halencarjunior · infoleak
https://github.com/halencarjunior/CVE-2023-36845

This repository contains a scanner for CVE-2023-36845, a vulnerability in Juniper Web Device Manager. The scanner checks for vulnerable hosts by sending a crafted POST request to the target and verifying the response for the presence of '/etc/passwd' content.

Classification
Scanner 90%
Attack Type
Info Leak
Complexity
Trivial
Reliability
Reliable
Target: Juniper Web Device Manager
No auth needed
Prerequisites: Python 3+ · shodan · colorama · urlopen · pyOpenSSL · censys
devstral-2 · analyzed Feb 16, 2026 Full analysis →
nomisec WORKING POC
by kopfjager007 · remote
https://github.com/kopfjager007/CVE-2023-36845

This is a functional exploit for CVE-2023-36845, targeting Juniper JunOS J-Web PHP external variable modification. It provides an interactive console to execute commands like 'ls' and 'cat' via PHP code injection, leveraging the vulnerability to achieve remote code execution (RCE).

Classification
Working Poc 95%
Attack Type
Rce
Complexity
Moderate
Reliability
Reliable
Target: Juniper JunOS J-Web
No auth needed
Prerequisites: Network access to the target J-Web interface · PHP environment variable modification vulnerability present in the target
devstral-2 · analyzed Feb 16, 2026 Full analysis →
nomisec WORKING POC
by ifconfig-me · infoleak
https://github.com/ifconfig-me/CVE-2023-36845

This script exploits CVE-2023-36845 to leak /etc/passwd by abusing PHP's auto_prepend_file directive via a crafted request to about.php. It reads target URLs from a file and checks for vulnerability by fetching the passwd file.

Classification
Working Poc 90%
Attack Type
Info Leak
Complexity
Trivial
Reliability
Reliable
Target: ifconfig.me (specific version not specified)
No auth needed
Prerequisites: Target URLs listed in CVE-2023-36845-targets.txt · Accessible /etc/passwd on the target system
devstral-2 · analyzed Feb 16, 2026 Full analysis →
nomisec WORKING POC
by 0xNehru · remote
https://github.com/0xNehru/CVE-2023-36845-Juniper-Vulnerability

This PoC exploits CVE-2023-36845 in Juniper Networks Junos OS by manipulating the PHPRC environment variable to inject arbitrary PHP code via file upload, leading to potential remote code execution (RCE). The script automates the attack against multiple targets listed in a hosts.txt file using concurrent requests.

Classification
Working Poc 90%
Attack Type
Rce
Complexity
Trivial
Reliability
Reliable
Target: Juniper Networks Junos OS (J-Web component)
No auth needed
Prerequisites: Python 3.x · requests library · list of target IPs in hosts.txt
devstral-2 · analyzed Feb 16, 2026 Full analysis →
nomisec WORKING POC
by iveresk · remote
https://github.com/iveresk/CVE-2023-36845-6-

This repository contains a bash script that exploits CVE-2023-36845 and CVE-2023-36846 in Juniper Junos OS J-Web. The script sends a crafted curl request to trigger remote code execution by manipulating the PHPRC environment variable.

Classification
Working Poc 90%
Attack Type
Rce
Complexity
Trivial
Reliability
Reliable
Target: Juniper Junos OS J-Web
No auth needed
Prerequisites: Target IP or list of IPs · Network access to the target
devstral-2 · analyzed Feb 16, 2026 Full analysis →
nomisec WORKING POC
by CharonDefalt · remote
https://github.com/CharonDefalt/Juniper-exploit-CVE-2023-36845

This repository contains a Python script and documentation for exploiting CVE-2023-36845, a PHP environment variable manipulation vulnerability in Juniper SRX firewalls and EX switches. The exploit leverages the `auto_prepend_file` parameter to achieve remote code execution (RCE) via PHP configuration manipulation.

Classification
Working Poc 90%
Attack Type
Rce
Complexity
Moderate
Reliability
Reliable
Target: Juniper SRX firewalls and EX switches
No auth needed
Prerequisites: Target must be running vulnerable Juniper software · PHP configuration must allow environment variable manipulation
devstral-2 · analyzed Feb 16, 2026 Full analysis →
nomisec SCANNER
by cyb3rzest · remote
https://github.com/cyb3rzest/Juniper-Bug-Automation-CVE-2023-36845

This is a bash script designed to scan for CVE-2023-36845 by sending a crafted request to a list of IP addresses and checking if the response contains sensitive data (e.g., /etc/passwd). It automates vulnerability detection but does not exploit it for RCE.

Classification
Scanner 90%
Attack Type
Info Leak
Complexity
Trivial
Reliability
Reliable
Target: Juniper Networks devices (specific version not specified)
No auth needed
Prerequisites: List of target IP addresses · Network access to target systems
devstral-2 · analyzed Feb 16, 2026 Full analysis →
nomisec SCANNER
by P4x1s · poc
https://github.com/P4x1s/ansible-cve-2023-36845

This repository contains an Ansible playbook designed to scan for potential instances of CVE-2023-36845. It is described as simple and untested, focusing on discovery rather than exploitation.

Classification
Scanner 80%
Attack Type
Other
Complexity
Trivial
Reliability
Theoretical
Target: Unknown (CVE-2023-36845 related software)
No auth needed
Prerequisites: Ansible installed · Inventory file configured
devstral-2 · analyzed Feb 16, 2026 Full analysis →
vulncheck_xdb WORKING POC
remote
https://github.com/r3dcl1ff/CVE-2023-36844_Juniper_RCE

This repository contains a functional exploit for CVE-2023-36844 (and related CVEs) targeting Juniper JunOS SRX/EX series. The exploit chains multiple vulnerabilities to achieve remote code execution by uploading a malicious PHP file and an INI file, then executing arbitrary PHP code.

Classification
Working Poc 95%
Attack Type
Rce
Complexity
Moderate
Reliability
Reliable
Target: Juniper JunOS (SRX and EX Series)
No auth needed
Prerequisites: Network access to the target device · Web interface exposed
devstral-2 · analyzed Feb 25, 2026 Full analysis →
vulncheck_xdb WORKING POC
remote
https://github.com/watchtowrlabs/juniper-rce_cve-2023-36844

This repository contains a functional exploit PoC for chaining CVE-2023-36844, CVE-2023-36845, CVE-2023-36846, and CVE-2023-36847 to achieve remote code execution on Juniper JunOS SRX and EX Series products. The exploit leverages a pre-authentication file upload vulnerability to upload a malicious PHP file and a PHP configuration file, then executes the payload by manipulating the PHPRC environment variable.

Classification
Working Poc 100%
Attack Type
Rce
Complexity
Moderate
Reliability
Reliable
Target: Juniper JunOS (SRX and EX Series)
No auth needed
Prerequisites: Network access to the target J-Web interface · Vulnerable version of Juniper JunOS
devstral-2 · analyzed Feb 25, 2026 Full analysis →
vulncheck_xdb STUB
infoleak
https://github.com/PortSwigger/BChecks

The repository contains only GitHub issue templates, workflows, and documentation files (e.g., CODE_OF_CONDUCT.md, CONTRIBUTING.md) without any actual exploit code or technical details related to CVE-2023-36845.

Classification
Stub 90%
Attack Type
Other
Complexity
N/a
Reliability
N/a
Target: N/A
No auth needed
devstral-2 · analyzed Feb 25, 2026 Full analysis →
metasploit WORKING POC EXCELLENT
by Jacob Baines, Ron Bowes, jheysel-r7, Fabian Hafner · rubypocphp
https://github.com/rapid7/metasploit-framework/blob/master/modules/exploits/freebsd/http/junos_phprc_auto_prepend_file.rb

This Metasploit module exploits CVE-2023-36845 in Juniper Junos OS by manipulating PHP environment variables (auto_prepend_file and allow_url_include) to achieve remote code execution. It includes a jailbreak technique to escalate privileges by stealing tokens from authenticated J-Web users and overwriting the root password hash.

Classification
Working Poc 100%
Attack Type
Rce
Complexity
Moderate
Reliability
Reliable
Target: Juniper Junos OS (SRX firewalls and EX switches)
No auth needed
Prerequisites: Access to J-Web interface · PHP environment variable manipulation vulnerability
devstral-2 · analyzed Feb 16, 2026 Full analysis →

Nuclei Templates (1)

Juniper J-Web - Remote Code Execution
CRITICALVERIFIEDby yaser_s
Shodan: title:"Juniper Web Device Manager" || http.title:"juniper web device manager"
FOFA: title="juniper web device manager"

Scores

CVSS v3 9.8
EPSS 0.9435
EPSS Percentile 100.0%
Attack Vector NETWORK
CVSS:3.1/AV:N/AC:L/PR:N/UI:N/S:U/C:H/I:H/A:H

CISA SSVC

Vulnrichment
Exploitation active
Automatable yes
Technical Impact total

Details

CISA KEV 2023-11-13
VulnCheck KEV 2023-08-29
InTheWild.io 2023-11-08
ENISA EUVD EUVD-2023-40765
CWE
CWE-473
Status published
Products (4)
juniper/junos 20.4 (15 CPE variants)
juniper/junos 21.1 r1 (11 CPE variants)
juniper/junos 21.2 (14 CPE variants)
juniper/junos 21.3 (10 CPE variants)
Published Aug 17, 2023
KEV Added Nov 13, 2023
Tracked Since Feb 18, 2026