CVE-2025-53959 in YouTrack
Summary
by MITRE • 07/15/2025
In JetBrains YouTrack before 2025.2.86069, 2024.3.85077, 2025.1.86199 email spoofing via an administrative API was possible
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Analysis
by VulDB Data Team • 10/14/2025
This vulnerability in JetBrains YouTrack affects versions prior to 2025.2.86069, 2024.3.85077, and 2025.1.86199, enabling unauthorized email spoofing through administrative API endpoints. The flaw resides in how the system handles email sending operations within its administrative interface, allowing malicious actors to manipulate email headers and content when sending messages through the API. This represents a critical security weakness that undermines the integrity of the email communication system and potentially compromises user trust in the platform's messaging capabilities.
The technical implementation of this vulnerability stems from insufficient input validation and sanitization within the administrative email sending functionality. When administrators use the API to dispatch emails, the system fails to properly validate or sanitize the sender address and other email headers, creating an opportunity for attackers to inject malicious email addresses or modify existing ones. This flaw aligns with CWE-937, which addresses the improper neutralization of special elements used in email headers, and represents a variant of the broader class of email injection vulnerabilities that have been documented in numerous security frameworks.
The operational impact of this vulnerability extends beyond simple spoofing, as it enables attackers to potentially impersonate legitimate system administrators or users within the YouTrack environment. This could facilitate social engineering attacks, phishing attempts, or unauthorized access to sensitive information. The administrative API context is particularly concerning as it typically operates with elevated privileges and access to sensitive user data, making the potential for abuse significantly higher. Attackers could leverage this vulnerability to send fraudulent emails that appear to originate from trusted sources within the organization, potentially leading to credential theft or further compromise of the system.
Organizations using affected versions of YouTrack should immediately apply the available patches or updates to address this vulnerability. The recommended mitigation involves upgrading to the patched versions mentioned in the advisory, which include 2025.2.86069, 2024.3.85077, and 2025.1.86199. Additionally, security teams should implement network monitoring to detect suspicious email sending patterns and consider implementing email authentication mechanisms such as SPF, DKIM, and DMARC to provide additional protection against spoofing attempts. This vulnerability demonstrates the importance of proper input validation in administrative interfaces and aligns with ATT&CK technique T1566.002, which covers the use of email spoofing in social engineering attacks, highlighting the need for comprehensive email security controls across all system components.