# CVE-2004-2121: Path traversal in n/a

> Remote attackers can read and download arbitrary files from Borland Web Server via directory traversal in URLs.

- **Severity:** Medium 5.0 (`AV:N/AC:L/Au:N/C:P/I:N/A:N`)
- **Exploited in the wild:** Not known
- **Login needed:** Not needed
- **Attackable:** Over the internet
- **Victim action needed:** Not needed
- **Fix available:** No
- **Published:** 27 May 2005
- **Updated:** 8 Aug 2024
- **Also known as:** GHSA-qwwg-5jrf-cmqc

## What is CVE-2004-2121?

CVE-2004-2121 is a medium-severity path traversal vulnerability in n/a, published on 27 May 2005. An attacker can exploit it over the internet without logging in, with no action from the victim.

### Official description

Multiple directory traversal vulnerabilities in Borland Web Server (BWS) 1.0b3 and earlier allow remote attackers to read and download arbitrary files via (1) multi-dot "......" sequences, or (2) "%5c%2e%2e" (encoded "\..") sequences, in the URL.

## Which versions are affected by CVE-2004-2121?

It affects 1 product.


Products: Borland Software Web Server for Corel Paradox.

## How do I fix CVE-2004-2121?

No fix has been published for CVE-2004-2121 yet. Limit exposure of the affected software until one is available.

## Is CVE-2004-2121 being exploited?

It is not confirmed as exploited in the wild, but public exploit code for CVE-2004-2121 exists.

Public exploit code:

- borland Web server for corel paradox 1.0 b3 - Directory Traversal (exploitdb)

## Fix prompt for AI coding agents

```text
Check this codebase for CVE-2004-2121 and fix it if it is affected.

What it is: CVE-2004-2121 is a medium-severity path traversal vulnerability in n/a, published on 27 May 2005. An attacker can exploit it over the internet without logging in, with no action from the victim.
Exploitation: It is not confirmed as exploited in the wild, but public exploit code for CVE-2004-2121 exists.

Affected product: n/a. No package-level version data is available, so check the vendor advisory linked from the reference page.

Task:
1. Search the dependency manifests and lockfiles (for example package.json, package-lock.json, requirements.txt, poetry.lock, uv.lock, pom.xml, build.gradle, go.mod, Cargo.lock, Gemfile.lock) and any Dockerfiles for the affected packages, including transitive dependencies.
2. If an affected version is in use, upgrade it to the fixed version for its release line with the project's package manager, so the lockfile is regenerated. Prefer the smallest upgrade that fixes it.
3. If there is no fix, or the upgrade would break the build, do not guess: explain the risk and the safest workaround instead.
4. Run the tests and summarise what changed and why.
5. If nothing in the project is affected, say so and change nothing.

Reference: https://insights.sbomify.com/CVE-2004-2121/ (Markdown: https://insights.sbomify.com/CVE-2004-2121/index.md)
```

## Sources

- CVE record: https://www.cve.org/CVERecord?id=CVE-2004-2121
- NVD: https://nvd.nist.gov/vuln/detail/CVE-2004-2121
- OSV: https://osv.dev/vulnerability/CVE-2004-2121

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From sbomify Insights: https://insights.sbomify.com/CVE-2004-2121/
Summaries are generated and may contain mistakes; the official description above is the record.