CVE-2008-0615

DMSGuestbook <= 1.8.0 - Directory Traversal

2008-02-02 00:00

Strategic Overview

Status: Patched in 1.8.1
Affected Plugin: DMSGuestbook
Affected Version: <= 1.8.0
CVSS: 5.3Medium
Weakness type: CWE-22 · Improper Limitation of a Pathname to a Restricted Directory ('Path Traversal')
CVE: CVE-2008-0615

At a glance

CVE-2008-0615 is a medium-severity Improper Limitation of a Pathname to a Restricted Directory ('Path Traversal') vulnerability in the DMSGuestbook WordPress plugin, affecting versions <= 1.8.0. It carries a CVSS score of 5.3 (reachable over the network; low attack complexity). Exploitation requires no authentication. The issue is fixed in version 1.8.1; sites on affected versions should update now. Disclosed February 2008, reported by NBBN.

Vulnerability Overview

Directory traversal vulnerability in wp-admin/admin.php in the DMSGuestbook 1.8.0 and 1.7.0 plugin for WordPress allows remote authenticated users to read arbitrary files via a .. (dot dot) in the (1) folder and (2) file parameters.

Technical Analysis

The vector marks this flaw as remotely reachable over the network, with low attack complexity — no special timing or configuration is needed, and no privileges on the target site, and no interaction from a victim user.

CWE-22: Improper Limitation of a Pathname to a Restricted Directory ('Path Traversal')

Reaching this weakness in DMSGuestbook <= 1.8.0 takes a caller who can reach the endpoint. Path traversal happens when user-controlled text is used to build a filesystem path without being constrained to an intended directory, so sequences like ../ walk the resolved path somewhere else.

Depending on the operation, it means reading files outside the intended folder — wp-config.php being the usual target — or writing to and deleting paths the web server can touch. For DMSGuestbook the fix is 1.8.1: builds <= 1.8.0 are affected, anything from 1.8.1 onward is not.

Remediation

Update to version 1.8.1, or a newer patched version

How does WordSec protect against this?

The attempt arrives as an ordinary request to DMSGuestbook: WordSec's web application firewall inspects request payloads before WordPress loads them. None of that substitutes for the fix: DMSGuestbook 1.8.1 closes this, and updating the plugin is the step that ends it.

Firewall
Alerts

External References

https://www.cve.org/CVERecord?id=CVE-2008-0615 https://www.wordfence.com/threat-intel/vulnerabilities/id/a70a91f3-ec87-472a-9cb0-98c874b7825f https://nvd.nist.gov/vuln/detail/CVE-2008-0615

Related records

Other vulnerabilities in DMSGuestbook

CVSS Vector

5.3

CVSS:3.1/AV:N/AC:L/PR:N/UI:N/S:U/C:L/I:N/A:N

Base

Attack VectorNetwork
Attack ComplexityLow
Privileges RequiredNone
User InteractionNone
ScopeUnchanged
ConfidentialityLow
IntegrityNone
AvailabilityNone

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