Login denial of service via NUL-byte forwarding
Published Aug 28, 2026 · Updated Aug 28, 2026
Denial of service in OX Dovecot CE before 2.4.5 and Pro before 2.3.22.2, 3.0.7, or 3.1.6 allows attackers to crash login processes. The XCLIENT FORWARD parser accepts NUL-bearing forwarding data and carries the malformed value into state consumed by the next login. The source host must be listed as a trusted proxy; successful exploitation terminates the login process and can interrupt subsequent logins.
Summary
What happened
Denial of service in OX Dovecot CE before 2.4.5 and Pro before 2.3.22.2, 3.0.7, or 3.1.6 allows attackers to crash login processes. The XCLIENT FORWARD parser accepts NUL-bearing forwarding data and carries the malformed value into state consumed by the next login. The source host must be listed as a trusted proxy; successful exploitation terminates the login process and can interrupt subsequent logins.
The record
- CVE
- CVE-2026-42395
- Published
- Aug 28, 2026
- Updated
- Aug 28, 2026
- Vendor
- Open-Xchange GmbH
- Product
- OX Dovecot CE
- Classifications
- CWE-400, CWE-170, T1499.004
- Attack vector
- adjacent
- Privileges
- unauthenticated
Timeline
How it unfolded
- Aug 28, 2026CVE publishedPublication date reported by the CVE source.
- Aug 28, 2026Record updatedLatest update available in the CVE record.
Exploitability
Present is not the same as exploitable
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Is a vulnerable build present?
Compare these published version ranges with your installed build and any vendor patches.
- Affected versionversion=2.3.0 <2.4.5
What conditions does exploitation require?
What is affected?
Published CVSS scores
CVSS describes severity. EPSS estimates exploitation probability.
Attacks
What attackers are doing with it
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Weakness, pattern, technique
Public exploit references
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Technologies
Your stack
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Your stack
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