CVE-2007-1160
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 · uneditedwebSPELL 4.0, and possibly later versions, allows remote attackers to bypass authentication via a ws_auth cookie, a different vulnerability than CVE-2006-4782.
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 confidencewebSPELL 4.0 contains an authentication bypass vulnerability where remote attackers can gain unauthorized access by manipulating the ws_auth cookie. This allows complete circumvention of the login mechanism, granting attackers administrative or user-level access without valid credentials.
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= 4.0CVSS 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 webSPELL installationLook for webSPELL files on the web server, typically in the web root directory. Common indicators include folders like 'webspell', 'ws', or files with 'webspell' in the name.Affected if webSPELL software is present on the server
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Verify the exact version numberInspect version files or source code headers. Common locations include version.php, index.php, or a dedicated VERSION file in the webSPELL directory. Look for a version string indicating 4.0.Affected if The installed version is exactly 4.0
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Locate the ws_auth cookie handling codeSearch the webSPELL source code for 'ws_auth' or 'ws_authcookie' to find the authentication cookie processing logic. Check files in the _database or includes directories.Affected if The ws_auth cookie handling code exists in the installation
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Check cookie validation logicExamine the code handling the ws_auth cookie to determine if it performs cryptographic verification or simply trusts the cookie value without proper validation.Affected if The ws_auth cookie value is processed without cryptographic verification or server-side validation
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Confirm the application is accessibleVerify the webSPELL application is reachable over the network and the login/authentication functionality is exposed.Affected if The vulnerable webSPELL 4.0 installation is accessible externally
You are affected if webSPELL version 4.0 is installed and the ws_auth cookie mechanism without proper cryptographic validation is in use.
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 dataImplement proper server-side validation and cryptographic verification of the ws_auth cookie values; ensure cookies cannot be forged or tampered with. Consider disabling the affected application until a patched version is available, and audit for any compromised accounts.
- Consultation2.0 h
- Implementation4.0 h
- Testing3.0 h
- Review / QA1.0 h
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Free · runs locallyCheck whether your project pulls in CVE-2007-1160 — 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-2007-1160 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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- 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
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