CVE-2009-5159Public exploitNetwork attack vector

Stored XSS via unsanitized text attachment

Published Mar 13, 2020 · Updated Aug 7, 2024

Stored XSS in Invision Power Board 2.0 through 3.0.4 allows remote attackers to execute script via a crafted .txt attachment. The attachment response preserves user-supplied script markup instead of neutralizing it, allowing Internet Explorer 5 to interpret the .txt body as HTML in the forum's origin. A victim must open or click the malicious attachment in Internet Explorer 5, after which the script can read session cookies or modify page content in the site's security context.

CVSS severity6.1
Medium
EPSS probability3.47%
Next 30 days · Sep 16, 2026
Known exploitationUnconfirmed
Based on sourced intelligence
Hinoki checkNot available
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Summary

What happened

Stored XSS in Invision Power Board 2.0 through 3.0.4 allows remote attackers to execute script via a crafted .txt attachment. The attachment response preserves user-supplied script markup instead of neutralizing it, allowing Internet Explorer 5 to interpret the .txt body as HTML in the forum's origin. A victim must open or click the malicious attachment in Internet Explorer 5, after which the script can read session cookies or modify page content in the site's security context.

The record

CVE
CVE-2009-5159
Published
Mar 13, 2020
Updated
Aug 7, 2024
Vendor
Unknown vendor
Product
Unknown product
Classifications
CWE-79, T1204.002
Attack vector
network
Privileges
unauthenticated

Timeline

How it unfolded

  1. Mar 13, 2020CVE publishedPublication date reported by the CVE source.
  2. Aug 7, 2024Record updatedLatest update available in the CVE record.

Exploitability

Present is not the same as exploitable

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Is a vulnerable build present?

Affected buildAffected product and version details are unavailable.

What conditions does exploitation require?

Attack vectornetwork
Required privilegesunauthenticated

What is affected?

Affected products and versions are unavailable in this record.

Published CVSS scores

4.3NIST NVDAV:N/AC:M/Au:N/C:N/I:P/A:N
6.1NIST NVDCVSS:3.1/AV:N/AC:L/PR:N/UI:R/S:C/C:L/I:L/A:N

CVSS describes severity. EPSS estimates exploitation probability.

Attacks

What attackers are doing with it

Daily unique IPs observed by Shadowserver honeypots for known exploited vulnerabilities (KEVs). Missing observations do not establish an absence of attacks.

Daily unique IPsNo honeypot observations are available for this CVE in the selected window.

No observations available

Sep 10, 2026Sep 16, 2026
Latest reporting daySep 16, 2026
Latest daily unique IPsUnavailable
Prior 30-day averageUnavailable
SourceShadowserver honeypots (KEV)
Vectornetwork
Privilegesunauthenticated
Known exploitationUnconfirmed
Public exploitPublished

Weakness, pattern, technique

CWE-79Improper Neutralization of Input During Web Page Generation ('Cross-site Scripting')
T1204.002Malicious File

Public exploit references

Labels summarize the accepted research assessment. They do not indicate a test against your environment.

Technologies

Your stack

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Your stack

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