CVE-2023-41259 in Request Tracker
Summary
by MITRE • 11/03/2023
Best Practical Request Tracker (RT) before 4.4.7 and 5.x before 5.0.5 allows Information Disclosure via fake or spoofed RT email headers in an email message or a mail-gateway REST API call.
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Analysis
by VulDB Data Team • 02/01/2026
The vulnerability identified as CVE-2023-41259 affects Best Practical Request Tracker (RT) versions prior to 4.4.7 and 5.x prior to 5.0.5, presenting a critical information disclosure risk through manipulated email headers. This flaw resides in the email processing mechanisms of RT's mail gateway functionality, where the system fails to properly validate or sanitize incoming email headers that may be crafted by malicious actors to manipulate the system's interpretation of email metadata. The vulnerability specifically targets the REST API endpoint used for mail gateway operations, creating a pathway for attackers to inject forged header values that could be misinterpreted by the RT system.
The technical exploitation of this vulnerability occurs when RT processes incoming email messages or REST API calls containing maliciously crafted header fields. Attackers can manipulate standard email headers such as From, To, Subject, or custom headers to present false information about the email's origin or content. When RT processes these spoofed headers, it may inadvertently expose internal system information, user details, or other sensitive data that would normally be protected by proper header validation mechanisms. This represents a classic case of insufficient input validation and header sanitization, which aligns with CWE-20: Improper Input Validation and CWE-79: Cross-Site Scripting.
The operational impact of this vulnerability extends beyond simple information disclosure, as it can enable more sophisticated attacks including privilege escalation, unauthorized access to sensitive tickets or user data, and potential lateral movement within environments where RT is integrated with other systems. An attacker who successfully exploits this vulnerability could gain access to confidential information such as user credentials, ticket details, system configurations, or internal network information that should remain protected. The vulnerability particularly affects organizations that rely heavily on RT for ticket management, as it could allow unauthorized parties to extract valuable intelligence from the system.
Organizations should implement immediate mitigations including updating to RT versions 4.4.7 or 5.0.5, which contain patches addressing this header validation issue. Additionally, network-level controls such as email filtering rules and header validation policies should be implemented to prevent malformed headers from reaching the RT system. The ATT&CK framework categorizes this vulnerability under T1566: Phishing and T1071.004: Application Layer Protocol: DNS, as it involves email-based attacks and can be used as a vector for broader reconnaissance and exploitation activities. Security teams should also consider implementing monitoring for unusual header patterns in email processing logs and establish incident response procedures for detecting potential exploitation attempts. The vulnerability demonstrates the importance of proper input sanitization and validation in web applications, particularly those handling user-supplied data through email interfaces, and highlights the need for comprehensive security testing of mail gateway and API processing components.