CVE-2008-2027
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 · uneditedOpen redirect vulnerability in WebID/IISWebAgentIF.dll in RSA Authentication Agent 5.3.0.258 for Web for IIS, when accessed via certain browsers such as Mozilla Firefox, allows remote attackers to redirect users to arbitrary web sites and conduct phishing attacks via an ftp URL in the url parameter to a Redirect action.
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 confidenceOpen redirect vulnerability in RSA Authentication Agent 5.3.0.258 for Web's IISWebAgentIF.dll allows attackers to supply an ftp URL in the url parameter to the Redirect action, causing users to be redirected to arbitrary external sites for phishing attacks.
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= 5.3.0.258CVSS 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
- Partial
- Integrity
- Partial
- Availability
- None
AV:N/AC:M/Au:N/C:P/I:P/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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Locate IISWebAgentIF.dll on the systemSearch for IISWebAgentIF.dll in the web server's root directory, ISAPI extensions folder, or RSA installation directory (typically C:\Program Files\RSA Security\RSA Authentication Agent\Web\ or similar). Right-click the file and select Properties > Details to view the version information.Affected if The file version is 5.3.0.258 or if the file exists in an RSA Authentication Agent for Web installation directory.
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Identify if RSA Authentication Agent for Web is installed on IISOpen IIS Manager, expand the server node, and check for the RSA Web Agent ISAPI filter or extension. Also check Add/Remove Programs or the list of installed programs for RSA Authentication Agent.Affected if RSA Authentication Agent for Web is installed and the version shows 5.3.0.258.
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Test the Redirect endpoint for open redirect vulnerabilityAccess the vulnerable URL pattern such as http://yourserver/WebID/IISWebAgentIF.dll?Action=Redirect&url=ftp://example.com (or similar path to IISWebAgentIF.dll). Observe if the server performs a redirect to the supplied external URL.Affected if The server redirects to an arbitrary external URL supplied in the url parameter without validation.
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Review redirect configurationExamine the RSA configuration files in the installation directory (such as RSAAuthenticationAgent.ini, webagent.conf, or similar configuration files) for any URL validation or domain allowlist settings related to the Redirect action.Affected if No domain validation or allowlist is configured for the Redirect action, allowing arbitrary URLs.
You are affected if RSA Authentication Agent for Web version 5.3.0.258 is installed and the Redirect action in IISWebAgentIF.dll allows external URLs without validation.
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 dataApply vendor patch if available; otherwise, implement strict validation of the url parameter to reject external/arbitrary URLs and restrict redirects to trusted domains only.
- Consultation1.0 h
- Implementation2.0 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 $1,664.
Scan for this in your stack
Free · runs locallyCheck whether your project pulls in CVE-2008-2027 — 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-2008-2027 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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