FirefoxWeb browser · Mozilla
CVE-2004-0648
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 · uneditedMozilla (Suite) before 1.7.1, Firefox before 0.9.2, and Thunderbird before 0.7.2 allow remote attackers to launch arbitrary programs via a URI referencing the shell: protocol.
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 confidenceThis vulnerability in Mozilla Suite, Firefox, and Thunderbird allows remote attackers to execute arbitrary programs via specially crafted shell: protocol URIs. The shell: protocol handler in Windows can be abused to launch any installed program when a user clicks a malicious link.
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
FirefoxWeb browser
<= 0.9.2<= 1.7.1<= 0.7.2CVSS 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
- Complete
- Integrity
- Complete
- Availability
- Complete
AV:N/AC:L/Au:N/C:C/I:C/A:C
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.
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Identify installed Mozilla productsCheck the system for any of these applications: Mozilla Firefox, Mozilla Suite, or Mozilla Thunderbird. Use system inventory tools or check Add/Remove Programs in Windows Control Panel.Affected if Any of these three products are present on the system
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Determine Firefox versionIf Firefox is installed, find its version number. This is typically visible in the application under Help > About Mozilla Firefox, or check the program's file properties.Affected if The installed version is 0.9.2 or lower
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Determine Mozilla Suite versionIf Mozilla Suite is installed, find its version number. This is typically visible in the application under Help > About Mozilla Suite, or check the program's file properties.Affected if The installed version is 1.7.1 or lower
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Determine Thunderbird versionIf Thunderbird is installed, find its version number. This is typically visible in the application under Help > About Mozilla Thunderbird, or check the program's file properties.Affected if The installed version is 0.7.2 or lower
The environment is affected if any of these products (Firefox 0.9.2 or lower, Mozilla Suite 1.7.1 or lower, or Thunderbird 0.7.2 or lower) are installed on the system.
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.
dbcve · scopedUpgrade to Mozilla Suite 1.7.1+, Firefox 0.9.2+, or Thunderbird 0.7.2+ to patch this vulnerability. If these products are no longer needed, uninstall them.
Firefox 0.9.2+, Mozilla 1.7.1+, Thunderbird 0.7.2+
- Upgrade Firefox to version 0.9.2 or later
- Upgrade Mozilla Suite to version 1.7.1 or later
- Upgrade Thunderbird to version 0.7.2 or later
Generated from the published advisory — verify against the referenced sources before acting.
Fix this in Firefox
Scoped from the published advisory
- Consultation1.0 h
- Implementation1.0 h
- Testing1.0 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 $1,200.
Scan for this in your stack
Free · runs locallyCheck whether your project pulls in CVE-2004-0648 — 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-2004-0648 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
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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