CVE-2008-0448
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 · uneditedPHP remote file inclusion vulnerability in utils/class_HTTPRetriever.php in phpSearch allows remote attackers to execute arbitrary PHP code via a URL in the libcurlemuinc parameter.
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 confidenceRemote file inclusion vulnerability in phpSearch's utils/class_HTTPRetriever.php allows arbitrary PHP code execution via the libcurlemuinc parameter, which is not validated before being included.
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 dataall versionsCVSS 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
- Partial
- Availability
- Partial
AV:N/AC:L/Au:N/C:P/I:P/A:P
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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Locate phpSearch installationSearch web server directories for phpSearch installation by looking for phpSearch index.php or the utils/class_HTTPRetriever.php fileAffected if phpSearch is present on the server
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Verify vulnerable file existsCheck if the file utils/class_HTTPRetriever.php exists within the phpSearch installation directoryAffected if The file utils/class_HTTPRetriever.php exists in the phpSearch installation
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Inspect class_HTTPRetriever.php for vulnerable parameterOpen utils/class_HTTPRetriever.php and search for occurrences of 'libcurlemuinc' - the vulnerable parameter that gets included without validationAffected if The code contains a require or include statement using the libcurlemuinc parameter without sanitization
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Test RFI accessibilityIf the file is web-accessible, attempt a controlled test request to the file using the libcurlemuinc parameter pointing to a benign local file to confirm the parameter is processedAffected if The libcurlemuinc parameter is processed and file inclusion occurs without validation
If phpSearch with the utils/class_HTTPRetriever.php file is installed and the libcurlemuinc parameter handling is present without input validation, the environment is vulnerable to CVE-2008-0448.
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 dataSanitize or remove the libcurlemuinc parameter handling; implement strict allowlist validation for any included files, or remove the vulnerable HTTPRetriever component entirely if not needed.
- Consultation2.0 h
- Implementation4.0 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 $2,560.
Scan for this in your stack
Free · runs locallyCheck whether your project pulls in CVE-2008-0448 — 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-2008-0448 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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