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CVE-2026-40569
Published:April 21, 2026
Updated:April 23, 2026
FreeScout is a free self-hosted help desk and shared mailbox. Versions prior to 1.8.213 have a mass assignment vulnerability in the mailbox connection settings endpoints of FreeScout ("connectionIncomingSave()" at "app/Http/Controllers/MailboxesController.php:468" and "connectionOutgoingSave()" at line 398). Both methods pass "$request->all()" directly to "$mailbox->fill()" without any field allowlisting, allowing an authenticated admin to overwrite any of the 32 fields in the Mailbox model's "$fillable" array -- including security-critical fields that do not belong to the connection settings form, such as "auto_bcc", "out_server", "out_password", "signature", "auto_reply_enabled", and "auto_reply_message". Validation in "connectionIncomingSave()" is entirely commented out, and the validator in "connectionOutgoingSave()" only checks value formats for SMTP fields without stripping extra parameters. An authenticated admin user can exploit this by appending hidden parameters (e.g., "auto_bcc=attacker@evil.com") to a legitimate connection settings save request. Because the "auto_bcc" field is not displayed on the connection settings form (it only appears on the general mailbox settings page), the injection is invisible to other administrators reviewing connection settings. Once set, every outgoing email from the affected mailbox is silently BCC'd to the attacker via the "SendReplyToCustomer" job. The same mechanism allows redirecting outgoing SMTP through an attacker-controlled server, injecting tracking pixels or phishing links into email signatures, and enabling attacker-crafted auto-replies -- all from a single HTTP request. This is particularly dangerous in multi-admin environments where one admin can silently surveil mailboxes managed by others, and when an admin session is compromised via a separate vulnerability (e.g., XSS), the attacker gains persistent email exfiltration that survives session expiry. Version 1.8.213 fixes the issue.
Affected Packages
https://github.com/freescout-help-desk/freescout.git (GITHUB):
Affected version(s) >=1.0.0 <1.8.213
Fix Suggestion:
Update to version 1.8.213
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CVSS v4
Base Score:
9.3
Attack Vector
NETWORK
Attack Complexity
LOW
Attack Requirements
NONE
Privileges Required
HIGH
User Interaction
NONE
Vulnerable System Confidentiality
HIGH
Vulnerable System Integrity
HIGH
Vulnerable System Availability
LOW
Subsequent System Confidentiality
HIGH
Subsequent System Integrity
HIGH
Subsequent System Availability
LOW
CVSS v3
Base Score:
9
Attack Vector
NETWORK
Attack Complexity
LOW
Privileges Required
HIGH
User Interaction
NONE
Scope
CHANGED
Confidentiality
HIGH
Integrity
HIGH
Availability
LOW
Weakness Type (CWE)
Improper Access Control
Improperly Controlled Modification of Dynamically-Determined Object Attributes