CVE-2023-51326 in Cleaning Business Software
Summary
by MITRE • 02/20/2025
A lack of rate limiting in the 'Forgot Password' feature of PHPJabbers Cleaning Business Software v1.0 allows attackers to send an excessive amount of email for a legitimate user, leading to a possible Denial of Service (DoS) via a large amount of generated e-mail messages.
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Analysis
by VulDB Data Team • 03/07/2026
The vulnerability identified as CVE-2023-51326 represents a critical security flaw within the PHPJabbers Cleaning Business Software version 1.0, specifically affecting the password recovery functionality. This issue stems from the complete absence of rate limiting mechanisms within the 'Forgot Password' feature, creating a pathway for malicious actors to exploit the system's email sending capabilities. The vulnerability manifests when an attacker repeatedly submits requests through the password reset mechanism targeting legitimate user accounts, resulting in an exponential increase in email notifications being dispatched to the associated email addresses.
The technical implementation of this flaw demonstrates a fundamental failure in input validation and request management within the application's authentication flow. When users request password resets, the system should implement appropriate rate limiting to prevent abuse, typically by tracking request frequency from specific IP addresses or user accounts. Without these controls, attackers can generate massive volumes of password reset emails, potentially overwhelming email servers and consuming significant network resources. This lack of rate limiting directly violates security best practices outlined in CWE-307, which addresses inadequate protection against automated attacks through insufficient authentication attempt limits.
The operational impact of this vulnerability extends beyond simple resource exhaustion, creating potential for broader system compromise and service disruption. The denial of service condition occurs not only at the application level but also affects downstream email infrastructure, potentially causing legitimate users to miss critical password reset communications. Attackers could leverage this vulnerability to systematically target specific users by repeatedly requesting password resets for accounts they do not control, effectively disrupting service availability for legitimate users. This scenario aligns with ATT&CK technique T1499.004, which covers network denial of service attacks, and represents a form of resource exhaustion attack that can degrade overall system performance.
Mitigation strategies for this vulnerability should focus on implementing robust rate limiting controls within the password recovery feature. Organizations should deploy mechanisms that limit the number of password reset requests per user account or IP address within a specified time window, typically ranging from 5-10 requests per hour. Additionally, implementing account lockout mechanisms after excessive failed attempts and adding CAPTCHA verification for password reset requests would significantly reduce the effectiveness of automated attack vectors. The solution should also incorporate logging and monitoring capabilities to detect unusual patterns of password reset requests, enabling rapid response to potential abuse. Security patches should be prioritized for deployment across all affected systems, and the implementation should follow industry standards such as those outlined in the OWASP Top Ten 2021, specifically addressing the prevention of excessive resource consumption through proper access control and rate limiting measures.