CVE-2026-40496: Freescout Security Vulnerability (CVSS 8.8)

FreeScout is a free self-hosted help desk and shared mailbox. Prior to version 1.8.213, an unauthenticated attacker can access diagnostic and system tools that should be restricted to administrators. The /system/cron endpoint relies on a static MD5 hash derived from the APP_KEY, which is exposed in the response and logs. Accessing these endpoints reveals sensitive server information (Full Path Disclosure), process IDs, and allows for Resource Exhaustion (DoS) by triggering heavy background tasks repeatedly without any rate limiting. The cron hash is generated using md5(APP_KEY . 'web_cron_hash'). Since this hash is often transmitted via GET requests, it is susceptible to exposure in server logs, browser history, and proxy logs. Furthermore, the lack of rate limiting on these endpoints allows for automated resource exhaustion (DoS) and brute-force attempts. Version 1.8.213 fixes the issue.

FreeScout is a free help desk and shared inbox built with PHP's Laravel framework. Prior to 1.8.212, FreeScout does not take the limit_user_customer_visibility parameter into account when merging customers. This vulnerability is fixed in 1.8.212.

FreeScout is a free help desk and shared inbox built with PHP's Laravel framework. Versions 1.8.208 and below are vulnerable to Stored Cross-Site Scripting (XSS) through FreeScout's email notification templates. Incoming email bodies are stored in the database without sanitization and rendered unescaped in outgoing email notifications using Blade's raw output syntax {!! $thread->body !!}. An unauthenticated attacker can exploit this vulnerability by simply sending an email, and when opened by any subscribed agent or admin as part of their normal workflow, enabling universal HTML injection (phishing, tracking) and, in vulnerable email clients, JavaScript execution (session hijacking, credential theft, account takeover) affecting all recipients simultaneously. This issue has been fixed in version 1.8.209.

FreeScout is a free help desk and shared inbox built with PHP's Laravel framework. A patch bypass vulnerability for CVE-2026-27636 in FreeScout 1.8.206 and earlier allows any authenticated user with file upload permissions to achieve Remote Code Execution (RCE) on the server by uploading a malicious .htaccess file using a zero-width space character prefix to bypass the security check. The vulnerability exists in the sanitizeUploadedFileName() function in app/Http/Helper.php. The function contains a Time-of-Check to Time-of-Use (TOCTOU) flaw where the dot-prefix check occurs before sanitization removes invisible characters. This vulnerability is fixed in 1.8.207.

NervesHub is a web service that allows users to manage over-the-air (OTA) firmware updates of devices in the field. A vulnerability present starting in version 1.0.0 and prior to version 2.3.0 allowed attackers to brute-force user API tokens due to the predictable format of previously issued tokens. Tokens included user-identifiable components and were not cryptographically secure, making them susceptible to guessing or enumeration. The vulnerability could have allowed unauthorized access to user accounts or API actions protected by these tokens. A fix is available in version 2.3.0 of NervesHub. This version introduces strong, cryptographically-random tokens using `:crypto.strong_rand_bytes/1`, hashing of tokens before database storage to prevent misuse even if the database is compromised, and context-aware token storage to distinguish between session and API tokens. There are no practical workarounds for this issue other than upgrading. In sensitive environments, as a temporary mitigation, firewalling access to the NervesHub server can help limit exposure until an upgrade is possible.

High-risk TrustAllCerts routines disable standard TLS certificate validation. Combined with hard-coded DES symmetric encryption keys, a Man-in-the-Middle (MITM) actor could decrypt network traffic.