Summary
Craft CMS may expose private assets through anonymous "generate transform" calls via transform URL
An unauthenticated user can call assets/generate-transform with a private assetId, receive a valid transform URL, and fetch transformed image bytes.
The endpoint is anonymous and does not enforce per-asset authorization before returning the transform URL.
Details
Root cause:
- Anonymous endpoint accepts user-controlled asset reference.
- It creates and returns a transform URL for that asset without checking access rights.
- If the transform output is reachable, guest users can read content derived from private assets.
Who is impacted:
- Installations where private source assets can be transformed and transform URLs are reachable.
Security consequence:
- Anonymous users can obtain content derived from private assets without authentication.
Resources
Impact
The application does not perform an authorization check before performing a sensitive operation. Typical impact: unauthorized access to restricted functionality or data.
Affected versions
Security releases
Kodem intelligence
Severity tells you how bad this could be in the worst case. It does not tell you whether you are exposed. Exploitability and impact are functions of runtime truth: whether the vulnerable code is present, reachable, and actually executes in your application. A vulnerable package can sit in your dependency tree and never run.
Kodem, an Intelligent Application Security platform, uses runtime intelligence to reveal which vulnerabilities actually execute in production, so teams prioritize the ones that genuinely matter. Kodem's runtime-powered SCA identifies whether this CVE is reachable in your applications.
Already deployed Kodem?
See it in your environmentNew to Kodem? Get a demo →Remediation advice
craftcms/cms to 5.9.14 or later; craftcms/cms to 4.17.8 or later
Kodem Kai can prioritize this vulnerability in your dependency tree and generate a fix recommendation.
Frequently Asked Questions
- What is CVE-2026-33160? CVE-2026-33160 is a low-severity missing authorization vulnerability in craftcms/cms (composer), affecting versions >= 5.0.0-RC1, <= 5.9.13. It is fixed in 5.9.14, 4.17.8. The application does not perform an authorization check before performing a sensitive operation.
- Which versions of craftcms/cms are affected by CVE-2026-33160? craftcms/cms (composer) versions >= 5.0.0-RC1, <= 5.9.13 is affected.
- Is there a fix for CVE-2026-33160? Yes. CVE-2026-33160 is fixed in 5.9.14, 4.17.8. Upgrade to this version or later.
- Is CVE-2026-33160 exploitable, and should I be worried? Whether CVE-2026-33160 is exploitable in your environment depends on whether the vulnerable code is present and reachable. A CVSS score is a worst-case rating; it does not account for your specific deployment, configuration, or usage patterns. Kodem, an Intelligent Application Security platform, uses runtime intelligence to show which vulnerabilities actually execute in production, so you can focus on the ones that represent real risk. Get a demo
- What actually determines whether CVE-2026-33160 is exploitable, and how bad it is? Exploitability and impact are not fixed properties of a CVE. They depend on runtime truth: whether the vulnerable code is present, reachable, and actually executes in your application. A high CVSS score on a dependency that never runs is not the same as real risk. Kodem, an Intelligent Application Security platform, uses runtime intelligence to reveal which vulnerabilities actually execute in production, so teams prioritize the ones that genuinely matter.
- How do I fix CVE-2026-33160?
- Upgrade
craftcms/cmsto 5.9.14 or later - Upgrade
craftcms/cmsto 4.17.8 or later
- Upgrade