CVE-2019-0219: Cordova plugin inappbrowser Privilege Escalation Vulnerability

CRITICAL
Advisory Identifier: GHSA-c6pw-q7f2-97hv
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CVSS 9.8
CWE-79
Published
Advisory Summary

CVE-2019-0219 is a CRITICAL (CVSS 9.8) privilege escalation vulnerability (CWE-79: Improper Neutralization of Input During Web Page Generation ('Cross-site Scripting')) affecting Cordova plugin inappbrowser libraries in the npm ecosystem. The issue involves privilege escalation in cordova-plugin-inappbrowser. Remediation is available by upgrading affected packages to version 3.1.0.

CVE-2019-0219 at a Glance

CVE Identifier CVE-2019-0219
GHSA Identifier GHSA-c6pw-q7f2-97hv
Severity CRITICAL
CVSS v3.1 Base Score 9.8
CWE Classification CWE-79: Improper Neutralization of Input During Web Page Generation ('Cross-site Scripting')
Affected Product Cordova plugin inappbrowser
Package Ecosystem npm
Published Date
Last Updated

Security Impact

CVSS: 9.8

The security impact metrics below are parsed directly from the CVSS v3.1 vector string (CVSS:3.1/AV:N/AC:L/PR:N/UI:N/S:U/C:H/I:H/A:H).

Attack Vector Network (AV:N)
Attack Complexity Low (AC:L)
Privileges Required None (PR:N)
User Interaction None (UI:N)
Scope Unchanged (S:U)
Confidentiality High (C:H)
Integrity High (I:H)
Availability High (A:H)

How to Fix CVE-2019-0219

To remediate this vulnerability, upgrade all affected Cordova plugin inappbrowser dependencies to a patched release. Both direct and transitive dependencies should be checked, as frameworks or security libraries may pull in vulnerable versions transitively.

cordova-plugin-inappbrowser fixed: 3.1.0 
npm install cordova-plugin-inappbrowser@3.1.0
Verify Direct and Transitive Dependencies

Run the following command in your project directory to verify that all resolved dependencies use the patched release: 

npm ls cordova-plugin-inappbrowser

How to Check if You Are Affected

To determine whether your Node.js application is affected by CVE-2019-0219, inspect your project dependencies using npm:

npm ls cordova-plugin-inappbrowser

Analyze the terminal output to locate any version of Cordova plugin inappbrowser in your dependency tree. If any resolved version matches the vulnerable ranges listed in the table below (for example, versions earlier than 3.1.0), your application is affected.

Note: The npm ls cordova-plugin-inappbrowser command inspects dependencies declared in your package.json and lockfile; it does not perform automated runtime dynamic scanning.

Technical Details

Vulnerability Mechanism & Technical Analysis

This vulnerability is classified under CWE-79: Improper Neutralization of Input During Web Page Generation ('Cross-site Scripting'), where the product does not neutralize or incorrectly neutralizes user-controllable input before it is placed in output that is used as a web page that is served to other users. In Cordova plugin inappbrowser, software state validation or input boundaries are circumvented during processing. Review the official source advisory statement below for specific affected components, classes, and reproduction details.

Source Advisory Statement

Versions of `cordova-plugin-inappbrowser` prior to 3.1.0 are vulnerable to Privilege Escalation. A website running in the InAppBrowser webview on Android could execute arbitrary JavaScript in the main application's webview using a specially crafted gap-iab: URI. This affects Cordova Android applications using the package. ## Recommendation Upgrade to version 3.1.0 or later.

CVE-2019-0219 Affected Cordova plugin inappbrowser Versions

1 component(s)
Fixed Versions:
3.1.0
Product / Package Ecosystem Affected Versions Fixed Version
cordova-plugin-inappbrowser
npm/cordova-plugin-inappbrowser
npm
< 3.1.0
3.1.0

References

NVD — CVE-2019-0219 NVD
https://nvd.nist.gov/vuln/detail/CVE-2019-0219
Cordova plugin inappbrowser Source Repository REPOSITORY
https://github.com/apache/cordova-plugin-inappbrowser
lists.apache.org/thread.html/197482d... WEB
https://lists.apache.org/thread.html/197482d5ab80c0bff4a5ec16e1b0466df38389d9a4b5331d777f14fc%40%3Cdev.cordova.apache.org%3E
lists.apache.org/thread/4vtg0trdrh52... WEB
https://lists.apache.org/thread/4vtg0trdrh5203dktt4f3vkd5z2d5ndj
www.npmjs.com/advisories/1467 WEB
https://www.npmjs.com/advisories/1467
Cordova plugin inappbrowser Security Information SECURITY
https://www.oracle.com//security-alerts/cpujul2021.html
Cordova plugin inappbrowser Security Information SECURITY
https://www.oracle.com/security-alerts/cpuApr2021.html
Cordova plugin inappbrowser Security Information SECURITY
https://www.oracle.com/security-alerts/cpujul2022.html
Cordova plugin inappbrowser Security Information SECURITY
http://www.openwall.com/lists/oss-security/2019/11/28/1

Frequently Asked Questions

What is CVE-2019-0219?
CVE-2019-0219 is a security vulnerability in Cordova plugin inappbrowser involving Privilege Escalation in cordova-plugin-inappbrowser under CWE-79: Improper Neutralization of Input During Web Page Generation ('Cross-site Scripting').
Which Cordova plugin inappbrowser versions are affected?
Affected versions include releases prior to 3.1.0 across affected packages: cordova-plugin-inappbrowser.
What version fixes CVE-2019-0219?
Upgrading to 3.1.0 (or the latest patched release for your respective branch) resolves the vulnerability.
Is cordova-plugin-inappbrowser affected?
Yes, cordova-plugin-inappbrowser is affected in releases prior to 3.1.0. Upgrade your dependency to 3.1.0 or later.
What is the CVSS score of CVE-2019-0219?
CVE-2019-0219 has a CVSS v3.1 base score of 9.8 (CRITICAL) with vector string CVSS:3.1/AV:N/AC:L/PR:N/UI:N/S:U/C:H/I:H/A:H.
What CWE is associated with CVE-2019-0219?
CVE-2019-0219 is classified under CWE-79: Improper Neutralization of Input During Web Page Generation ('Cross-site Scripting') (The product does not neutralize or incorrectly neutralizes user-controllable input before it is placed in output that is used as a web page that is served to other users.).
How can I check npm dependencies for CVE-2019-0219?
Run the dependency tree command: 'npm ls cordova-plugin-inappbrowser'. This command lists direct and transitive dependencies in your build configuration so you can verify if a vulnerable version is resolved.
Machine-readable OSV JSON OSV v1.5 Schema
Normalized schema output
View Raw JSON 
{
  "schema_version" : "1.4.0",
  "id" : "GHSA-c6pw-q7f2-97hv",
  "modified" : "2026-06-18T19:01:55Z",
  "published" : "2020-09-04T17:57:43Z",
  "aliases" : [ "CVE-2019-0219" ],
  "summary" : "Privilege Escalation in cordova-plugin-inappbrowser",
  "details" : "Versions of `cordova-plugin-inappbrowser` prior to 3.1.0 are vulnerable to Privilege Escalation. A website running in the InAppBrowser webview on Android could execute arbitrary JavaScript in the main application's webview using a specially crafted gap-iab: URI. This affects Cordova Android applications using the package.\n\n\n## Recommendation\n\nUpgrade to version 3.1.0 or later.",
  "severity" : [ {
    "type" : "CVSS_V3",
    "score" : "CVSS:3.1/AV:N/AC:L/PR:N/UI:N/S:U/C:H/I:H/A:H"
  } ],
  "affected" : [ {
    "package" : {
      "ecosystem" : "npm",
      "name" : "cordova-plugin-inappbrowser"
    },
    "ranges" : [ {
      "type" : "ECOSYSTEM",
      "events" : [ {
        "introduced" : "0"
      }, {
        "fixed" : "3.1.0"
      } ]
    } ]
  } ],
  "references" : [ {
    "type" : "ADVISORY",
    "url" : "https://nvd.nist.gov/vuln/detail/CVE-2019-0219"
  }, {
    "type" : "PACKAGE",
    "url" : "https://github.com/apache/cordova-plugin-inappbrowser"
  }, {
    "type" : "WEB",
    "url" : "https://lists.apache.org/thread.html/197482d5ab80c0bff4a5ec16e1b0466df38389d9a4b5331d777f14fc%40%3Cdev.cordova.apache.org%3E"
  }, {
    "type" : "WEB",
    "url" : "https://lists.apache.org/thread/4vtg0trdrh5203dktt4f3vkd5z2d5ndj"
  }, {
    "type" : "WEB",
    "url" : "https://www.npmjs.com/advisories/1467"
  }, {
    "type" : "WEB",
    "url" : "https://www.oracle.com//security-alerts/cpujul2021.html"
  }, {
    "type" : "WEB",
    "url" : "https://www.oracle.com/security-alerts/cpuApr2021.html"
  }, {
    "type" : "WEB",
    "url" : "https://www.oracle.com/security-alerts/cpujul2022.html"
  }, {
    "type" : "WEB",
    "url" : "http://www.openwall.com/lists/oss-security/2019/11/28/1"
  } ],
  "database_specific" : {
    "cwe_ids" : [ "CWE-79" ],
    "severity" : "CRITICAL",
    "github_reviewed" : true,
    "github_reviewed_at" : "2020-08-31T19:00:21Z",
    "nvd_published_at" : "2020-01-14T15:15:00Z"
  }
}