CVE-2011-1902
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 · uneditedDirectory traversal vulnerability in the web interface in Proofpoint Messaging Security Gateway 6.2.0.263:6.2.0.237 and earlier in Proofpoint Protection Server 5.5.3, 5.5.4, 5.5.5, 6.0.2, 6.1.1, and 6.2.0 allows remote attackers to read arbitrary files via unspecified vectors.
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 · moderate confidenceDirectory traversal vulnerability in the web interface of Proofpoint Messaging Security Gateway and Protection Server allows remote attackers to read arbitrary files on the system via unspecified vectors, likely through manipulation of path parameters using '../' sequences.
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<= 6.2.0.263\:6.2.0.237= 5.5.3= 5.5.4= 5.5.5= 6.0.2= 6.1.1= 6.2.0CVSS 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
- 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 checksWork through these to decide whether this CVE applies to you.
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Confirm product is runningIdentify the Proofpoint product installed on the system (Messaging Security Gateway or Protection Server) and verify the web interface service is running. This may be visible in system processes, service listings, or by accessing the web interface URL.Affected if The product web interface is accessible and running
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Determine installed versionAccess the web interface admin console or use system commands to retrieve the exact version number of the Proofpoint Messaging Security Gateway or Protection Server installation.Affected if The installed version matches <= 6.2.0.263 for Messaging Security Gateway or equals 5.5.3, 5.5.4, 5.5.5, 6.0.2, 6.1.1, or 6.2.0 for Protection Server
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Check web interface exposureVerify whether the web interface is exposed to network access, particularly to untrusted networks. This includes checking firewall rules, network ACLs, and interface bindings.Affected if The web interface is accessible from networks outside the trusted internal environment
A system is affected if it runs a vulnerable version of Proofpoint Messaging Security Gateway or Protection Server and has the web interface enabled and accessible.
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-provided patches for affected versions. Until patched, consider deploying web application firewall rules to block directory traversal patterns and restrict web interface access to trusted IPs.
- Consultation6.0 h
- Implementation12.0 h
- Testing8.0 h
- Review / QA4.0 h
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Scan for this in your stack
Free · runs locallyCheck whether your project pulls in CVE-2011-1902 — 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-2011-1902 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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