# CVE-2008-4491: Information disclosure in n/a

> Enabling server-side draft storage causes Apple Mail to store S/MIME emails in plaintext, allowing attackers to read sensitive messages.

- **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:** 8 Oct 2008
- **Updated:** 7 Aug 2024
- **Also known as:** GHSA-3w7r-6cvf-4pv4

## What is CVE-2008-4491?

CVE-2008-4491 is a medium-severity vulnerability in n/a, published on 8 Oct 2008. An attacker can exploit it over the internet without logging in, with no action from the victim.

### Official description

Apple Mail.app 3.5 on Mac OS X, when "Store draft messages on the server" is enabled, stores draft copies of S/MIME email in plaintext on the email server, which allows server owners and remote man-in-the-middle attackers to read sensitive mail.

Weakness: CWE-200 (Exposure of Sensitive Information to an Unauthorized Actor)

## Which versions are affected by CVE-2008-4491?

It affects 1 product.


Products: Apple Mail.

## How do I fix CVE-2008-4491?

No fix has been published for CVE-2008-4491 yet. Limit exposure of the affected software until one is available.

## Is CVE-2008-4491 being exploited?

There is no known exploitation of CVE-2008-4491 in the wild and no public exploit code.

## Other vulnerabilities in n/a

- [CVE-2008-0039](https://insights.sbomify.com/CVE-2008-0039/): Code injection in n/a (medium 6.8)
- [CVE-2017-17688](https://insights.sbomify.com/CVE-2017-17688/): Information disclosure in n/a (medium 5.9)
- [CVE-2010-3887](https://insights.sbomify.com/CVE-2010-3887/): Security feature bypass in n/a (medium 4.3)

## Fix prompt for AI coding agents

```text
Check this codebase for CVE-2008-4491 and fix it if it is affected.

What it is: CVE-2008-4491 is a medium-severity vulnerability in n/a, published on 8 Oct 2008. An attacker can exploit it over the internet without logging in, with no action from the victim.
Exploitation: There is no known exploitation of CVE-2008-4491 in the wild and no public exploit code.

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-2008-4491/ (Markdown: https://insights.sbomify.com/CVE-2008-4491/index.md)
```

## Sources

- CVE record: https://www.cve.org/CVERecord?id=CVE-2008-4491
- NVD: https://nvd.nist.gov/vuln/detail/CVE-2008-4491
- OSV: https://osv.dev/vulnerability/CVE-2008-4491

---
From sbomify Insights: https://insights.sbomify.com/CVE-2008-4491/
Summaries are generated and may contain mistakes; the official description above is the record.