Enterprise Linux DesktopOperating system · Redhat
CVE-2017-7846
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 · uneditedIt is possible to execute JavaScript in the parsed RSS feed when RSS feed is viewed as a website, e.g. via "View -> Feed article -> Website" or in the standard format of "View -> Feed article -> default format". This vulnerability affects Thunderbird < 52.5.2.
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 confidenceCross-site scripting (XSS) vulnerability in Thunderbird's RSS feed viewer allows malicious RSS feeds to execute arbitrary JavaScript when users view feed articles as websites via the 'View -> Feed article -> Website' or 'default format' options.
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
Enterprise Linux DesktopOperating system
= 6.0= 7.0
Enterprise Linux ServerOperating system
= 6.0= 7.0
Enterprise Linux Server AusOperating system
= 7.4
Enterprise Linux Server EusOperating system
= 7.4= 7.5
Enterprise Linux WorkstationOperating system
= 6.0= 7.0
Debian LinuxOperating system
= 7.0= 8.0= 9.0< 52.5.2CVSS 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
- Privileges
- None
- User interaction
- Required
- Scope
- Unchanged
- Confidentiality
- High
- Integrity
- High
- Availability
- High
CVSS:3.0/AV:N/AC:L/PR:N/UI:R/S:U/C:H/I:H/A:H
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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Check Thunderbird versionRun 'thunderbird --version' in terminal, or open Thunderbird, go to Help -> About Thunderbird to see the version numberAffected if Version is earlier than 52.5.2
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Verify RSS feed accounts existIn Thunderbird, check Account Settings or look for Feed subscriptions in the folder pane. Run 'ls ~/.thunderbird/*/ImapMail/' 2>/dev/null to list mail accounts, or check for feeds.sqlite database in the profile directoryAffected if RSS/Atom feed accounts are configured in Thunderbird
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Confirm feed article display formatRight-click any RSS feed item in Thunderbird, look for 'View Feed Article As' or 'View -> Feed article' menu options. Check if 'Website' or 'Default format' options are availableAffected if The 'View Feed article -> Website' or default format options are present and accessible in the UI
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Identify Thunderbird profile locationRun 'thunderbird -P' to see profile paths, or check ~/.thunderbird/ for profiles.iniAffected if A Thunderbird profile exists (vulnerability only applies to installed Thunderbird instances with profiles)
User is affected if Thunderbird version is below 52.5.2 AND they have RSS feeds configured that can be viewed using the Website or default format options.
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 data52.5.2
Upgrade Thunderbird to version 52.5.2 or later to obtain the patched version of the RSS feed parsing component.
Fix this in Enterprise Linux Desktop
Scoped from the published advisory
- Consultation1.0 h
- Implementation1.0 h
- Testing1.0 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 $1,200.
Scan for this in your stack
Free · runs locallyCheck whether your project pulls in CVE-2017-7846 — 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-2017-7846 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
- No spam, self-promotion, credentials, or personal data