dbcve.org
SimplenewsApplication

CVE-2007-4872

MEDIUM · 5.0 CVSS v2.0 Published 2007-09-27
Mitigation only
No fix yet — a mitigation exists. There is no fixed release. A documented workaround reduces exposure in the meantime.
See remediation →
59/100
Remediation priority · Elevated
Remotely reachable No privileges Zero-click

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 · unedited
SimpNews 2.41.03 allows remote attackers to obtain sensitive information via (1) an invalid lang parameter to admin/index.php; or a direct request to (2) admin/dbg_infos.php, (3) admin/heading.php, or (4) evsearch.php; which reveals the path in various error messages.

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 confidence

SimpNews 2.41.03 contains multiple files (admin/dbg_infos.php, admin/heading.php, evsearch.php, and admin/index.php with invalid lang parameter) that leak the full server filesystem path in error messages when accessed directly or with malformed input. This path disclosure aids attackers in mapping the target system's directory structure.

MitigationRestrict direct access to admin directory files and script files that should not be accessed directly; add exit/die guards at the beginning of included PHP files; or disable verbose PHP error display in production.

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
SimplenewsApplication
Affected:= 2.41.03

CVSS 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 checks

Work through these to decide whether this CVE applies to you.

  1. Confirm SimpNews installation
    Locate SimpNews PHP files on the web server, typically in the web document root or a subdirectory. Look for files named index.php, dbg_infos.php, heading.php, and evsearch.php.
    Affected if SimpNews files are present on the server
  2. Verify the installed version
    Check the version number in the application. Review any version.php file, README file, or the main index.php for a version string. Compare against the affected version 2.41.03.
    Affected if The installed version is exactly 2.41.03
  3. Test admin/dbg_infos.php for path disclosure
    Using a web browser or curl, access the file directly via HTTP: http://target-site.com/path/to/simpnews/admin/dbg_infos.php. Observe if a full server filesystem path appears in any error message or output.
    Affected if A full server path (such as /var/www or C:\inetpub) is visible in the response
  4. Test admin/heading.php for path disclosure
    Access http://target-site.com/path/to/simpnews/admin/heading.php directly via HTTP and inspect the response for any error messages containing filesystem paths.
    Affected if A full server path is displayed in the output
  5. Test evsearch.php for path disclosure
    Access http://target-site.com/path/to/simpnews/evsearch.php directly and provide malformed input (such as an invalid parameter value) to trigger an error message. Check if the error reveals a full server path.
    Affected if A full server path appears in the error output
  6. Check if PHP error display is enabled
    Review the PHP configuration (php.ini) or check if the application has error_reporting enabled at runtime. A simple test is to trigger a PHP error on any page and observe whether detailed errors are shown.
    Affected if PHP display_errors is set to On - this makes path disclosure visible to attackers

You are affected if SimpNews version 2.41.03 is installed AND any of the listed files (dbg_infos.php, heading.php, evsearch.php) reveal full server paths when accessed directly or with malformed input, especially if PHP error display is enabled.

Generated from the published advisory. Verify against your own configuration.

Check your environment

Paste your version and any relevant configuration and it will be compared against the affected criteria above. Do not include secrets or credentials.

AI-assisted, checked against the advisory. Informational, not a guarantee.

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 data
Mitigation available No clean upgrade yet — mitigate in the meantime
Mitigation

Restrict direct access to admin directory files and script files that should not be accessed directly; add exit/die guards at the beginning of included PHP files; or disable verbose PHP error display in production.

Fix this in Simplenews Scoped from the published advisory
  • Consultation2.0 h
  • Implementation3.0 h
  • Testing2.0 h
  • Review / QA1.0 h
8.0 hours of engineering $1,420
Get help mitigating

An estimate, not a bill — we confirm scope with you before any work starts. Need it this week? Rush from $2,272.

Scan for this in your stack

Free · runs locally
dbcve dependency scanner

Check whether your project pulls in CVE-2007-4872 — or any other known-vulnerable package — straight from your lock files. Free and open source; it runs locally and uploads nothing.

Get it on GitHub Scan in the browser

References Go to the primary sourcePrimary sources — vendor advisories, patches and trackers. Where our summary and a reference disagree, the reference wins.

Primary sources

Practitioner notes

Contributed

Peer-ranked notes from engineers who’ve handled CVE-2007-4872 in production — separate from our analysis above.

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.

What this is

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.

What belongs here
  • 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