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Lotus NotesApplication · Ibm

CVE-2008-1217

HIGH · 9.3 CVSS v2.0 Published 2008-03-09
Mitigation only
No fix yet — a mitigation exists. There is no fixed release. A documented workaround reduces exposure in the meantime.
See remediation →
100/100
Remediation priority · Urgent
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
Unspecified vulnerability in nlnotes.dll in the client in IBM Lotus Notes 6.5, 7.0.x before 7.0.2 CCH, and 8.0.x before 8.0.1 allows remote attackers to execute arbitrary code via a crafted attachment in an e-mail message sent over SMTP, a variant of CVE-2007-6706.

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

Remote code execution vulnerability in IBM Lotus Notes client (nlnotes.dll) allows attackers to execute arbitrary code via crafted attachments in SMTP email messages. The flaw exists in attachment handling and is a variant of CVE-2007-6706.

MitigationUpdate IBM Lotus Notes client to version 7.0.2 CCH or 8.0.1 or later to patch the vulnerability. Consider implementing email attachment filtering at the gateway as an additional defense layer.

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
Lotus NotesApplication
Affected:= 6.5= 7.0.2= 8.0.0

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
M
Authentication
None
Confidentiality
Complete
Integrity
Complete
Availability
Complete

AV:N/AC:M/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 checks

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

  1. Identify installed IBM Lotus Notes version
    Open Lotus Notes, go to Help > About IBM Lotus Notes, or check the version in the client login screen. Alternatively, check the Windows registry under HKEY_LOCAL_MACHINE\SOFTWARE\Lotus\Notes or the installation directory for version.info
    Affected if The displayed version is exactly 6.5, 7.0.2, or 8.0.0
  2. Verify client handles email attachments
    Confirm that the Lotus Notes client is configured to receive and open email attachments. This is typically enabled by default in standard client configurations. Check File > Preferences > Mail > General for attachment handling settings
    Affected if The client is configured to automatically handle attachments in received emails (default configuration)
  3. Confirm SMTP email reception
    Verify the client is configured to receive email via SMTP. Check File > Preferences > Mail > Internet Mail or examine the client location document for mail server settings
    Affected if The client receives email via SMTP protocol, which is the standard configuration for most installations

You are affected if your IBM Lotus Notes client version is exactly 6.5, 7.0.2, or 8.0.0 AND you handle email attachments in received SMTP messages (standard configuration).

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.

dbcve · scoped
Mitigation available No clean upgrade yet — mitigate in the meantime
Mitigation

Update IBM Lotus Notes client to version 7.0.2 CCH or 8.0.1 or later to patch the vulnerability. Consider implementing email attachment filtering at the gateway as an additional defense layer.

Recommended fix High confidence

Lotus Notes 7.0.2 CCH or later; Lotus Notes 8.0.1 or later (6.5 is end-of-life, migrate to 7.0.2+ or 8.0.1+)

  1. Identify the currently installed IBM Lotus Notes version and build number
  2. For Lotus Notes 7.0.x: Upgrade to version 7.0.2 CCH (Critical Patch Cluster) or later
  3. For Lotus Notes 8.0.x: Upgrade to version 8.0.1 or later
  4. For Lotus Notes 6.5: Upgrade to a supported version (7.0.2+ or 8.0.1+) as 6.5 is end-of-life
  5. Apply the upgrade via IBM Fix Central or your internal software distribution system
  6. Verify the nlnotes.dll version matches the patched release after installation
Caveat Upgrading major versions may require Note ID migration and template updates; test in staging environment before production deployment

Generated from the published advisory — verify against the referenced sources before acting.

Fix this in Lotus Notes Scoped from the published advisory
  • Consultation2.0 h
  • Implementation2.0 h
  • Testing2.0 h
  • Review / QA1.0 h
7.0 hours of engineering $1,240
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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-2008-1217 in production — separate from our analysis above.

No notes yet

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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