CVE-2005-1753
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 · uneditedReadMessage.jsp in JavaMail API 1.1.3 through 1.3, as used by Apache Tomcat 5.0.16, allows remote attackers to view other users' e-mail attachments via a direct request to /mailboxesdir/username@domainname. NOTE: Sun and Apache dispute this issue. Sun states: "The report makes references to source code and files that do not exist in the mentioned products.
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 · low confidenceDisputed vulnerability in ReadMessage.jsp (JavaMail API 1.1.3-1.3, Tomcat 5.0.16) allegedly allows viewing other users' email attachments via direct request to /mailboxesdir/username@domainname. Sun and Apache explicitly dispute this report, stating referenced source code and files do not exist in the affected products.
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= 1.1.3= 1.2= 1.3CVSS 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
- Partial
- Integrity
- None
- Availability
- None
AV:N/AC:L/Au:N/C:P/I:N/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.
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Check installed Sun Javamail versionLocate the javamail jar file in your application (typically in WEB-INF/lib or classpath) and check its version. Common file names include mail.jar or javamail.jar. Use 'jar -xf' to extract META-INF/MANIFEST.MF or check packaging metadata.Affected if Version is 1.1.3, 1.2, or 1.3
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Verify ReadMessage.jsp exists in deploymentSearch web application directories for a file named ReadMessage.jsp. Check webapp root, mail-related servlets, or JSP directories. Use file system search: 'find . -name ReadMessage.jsp'Affected if ReadMessage.jsp file is present in the deployed application
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Check for /mailboxesdir URL mappingExamine web.xml deployment descriptor and application configuration for any servlet mapping or alias pointing to /mailboxesdir. Also check if any directory named mailboxesdir or mailboxes exists in the webapp.Affected if A URL mapping or directory exists that serves files from a mailboxesdir path
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Confirm mailboxesdir is accessible without authenticationIf the path exists, attempt a direct HTTP request to /mailboxesdir/ or test whether this endpoint responds without authentication headers. Review servlet security constraints in web.xml.Affected if The /mailboxesdir path is accessible without authentication
You are affected only if you have Sun Javamail exactly versions 1.1.3, 1.2, or 1.3 AND the ReadMessage.jsp file exists in your deployment AND the /mailboxesdir path is configured and accessible; however, Sun and Apache dispute that this file/path combination exists in these versions.
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 dataNo patch available as vendors dispute the vulnerability's existence; verify with Apache/Tomcat and Sun whether your specific deployment is affected, or upgrade to newer supported versions as a precautionary measure.
- Consultation2.0 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-2005-1753 — 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-2005-1753 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