CVE-2003-0285
Official description Straight from the sourceThe vendor's or NVD's own wording, published unedited. Authoritative, but often terse — it says what broke, rarely what to do.
NVD · uneditedIBM AIX 5.2 and earlier distributes Sendmail with a configuration file (sendmail.cf) with the (1) promiscuous_relay, (2) accept_unresolvable_domains, and (3) accept_unqualified_senders features enabled, which allows Sendmail to be used as an open mail relay for sending spam e-mail.
Technical summary Written by usOur analysis, written from the advisory, the CVSS vector and the affected-version data. It adds context the advisory leaves out, and never invents facts that are not in the source.
dbcve analysis · high confidenceIBM AIX 5.2 and earlier ships Sendmail with three dangerous features enabled in sendmail.cf: promiscuous_relay, accept_unresolvable_domains, and accept_unqualified_senders. These settings allow the mail server to accept and relay messages from any source, turning it into an open relay that can be abused for spam.
Verify against the referenced sources before acting — the references below are authoritative for this CVE, this summary is not.
Affected products & versions What the vendor confirmedThe version ranges the vendor confirmed as vulnerable. If your version sits inside a range here, treat yourself as exposed until you have upgraded.
NVD · CPE data<= 5.2CVSS breakdown How the score is builtThe industry scoring standard. It rates how the flaw is reached, what it takes to exploit, and what an attacker gains — the score is derived from those, not the other way round.
From the vector- Attack vector
- Network
- Complexity
- Low
- Authentication
- None
- Confidentiality
- None
- Integrity
- Partial
- Availability
- None
AV:N/AC:L/Au:N/C:N/I:P/A:N
Am I affected? How to checkSteps we derive from the advisory and the affected-version data, so you can decide whether this CVE reaches your setup. They are a guide, not a scan — your own configuration is the authority.
dbcve checksWork through these to decide whether this CVE applies to you.
-
Check AIX versionRun 'oslevel -r' or 'uname -a' to determine the installed AIX versionAffected if The version is AIX 5.2 or earlier (520 or lower in the release field)
-
Locate sendmail.cfFind the sendmail configuration file, typically at /etc/mail/sendmail.cf or /etc/sendmail.cf on AIX systemsAffected if The file exists and is being used by the Sendmail daemon
-
Inspect for promiscuous_relaySearch the sendmail.cf file for the string 'promiscuous_relay' and determine if it appears without being commented outAffected if The feature is present and enabled (not prefixed with #)
-
Inspect for accept_unresolvable_domainsSearch the sendmail.cf file for the string 'accept_unresolvable_domains' and determine if it appears without being commented outAffected if The feature is present and enabled (not prefixed with #)
-
Inspect for accept_unqualified_sendersSearch the sendmail.cf file for the string 'accept_unqualified_senders' and determine if it appears without being commented outAffected if The feature is present and enabled (not prefixed with #)
You are affected if running AIX 5.2 or earlier with Sendmail and any of these three features (promiscuous_relay, accept_unresolvable_domains, accept_unqualified_senders) is enabled in your sendmail.cf configuration file.
Generated from the published advisory. Verify against your own configuration.
Remediation Closing itWhat it takes to close this. Where a vendor fix exists we point at it; where none exists we say so plainly, and can build one. Effort estimates are scoped from the advisory, not from your codebase.
From vendor dataDisable the promiscuous_relay, accept_unresolvable_domains, and accept_unqualified_senders features in sendmail.cf and restart Sendmail. Verify the server no longer functions as an open relay using relay check tools.
- Consultation2.0 h
- Implementation2.0 h
- Testing2.0 h
- Review / QA1.0 h
An estimate, not a bill — we confirm scope with you before any work starts. Need it this week? Rush from $1,984.
Scan for this in your stack
Free · runs locallyCheck whether your project pulls in CVE-2003-0285 — or any other known-vulnerable package — straight from your lock files. Free and open source; it runs locally and uploads nothing.
References Go to the primary sourcePrimary sources — vendor advisories, patches and trackers. Where our summary and a reference disagree, the reference wins.
Primary sourcesPractitioner notes
ContributedPeer-ranked notes from engineers who’ve handled CVE-2003-0285 in production — separate from our analysis above.
The advisory tells you what broke. It rarely tells you what actually worked. If you’ve dealt with this one, that detail is what the next engineer is searching for.
- The version that genuinely resolved it — not the one the vendor claimed
- A config change or rule that shut the vector down
- A gotcha in the upgrade path that cost you an afternoon
No notes yet
Be the first to add a field note for this CVE — a mitigation you’ve verified, a version caveat, or a link to a working fix. Sign in above to contribute.
A place for practitioners to share what actually worked: a mitigation you’ve tested, a configuration change, a version- or environment-specific caveat, or a link to a verified patch. The most useful notes rise to the top as peers upvote them, so the signal stays high.
- Verified mitigations, workarounds, and config changes
- Version or environment caveats, and links to real fixes
- No weaponised exploit code, or anything meant to cause harm
- No spam, self-promotion, credentials, or personal data