# CVE-2008-5883: Path traversal in n/a

> Remote attackers can list arbitrary directories in mini-pub by exploiting an absolute path traversal vulnerability in the sDir parameter.

- **Severity:** High 7.8 (`AV:N/AC:L/Au:N/C:C/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:** 12 Jan 2009
- **Updated:** 7 Aug 2024
- **Also known as:** GHSA-h8qq-vgcw-6px5

## What is CVE-2008-5883?

CVE-2008-5883 is a high-severity path traversal vulnerability in n/a, published on 12 Jan 2009. An attacker can exploit it over the internet without logging in, with no action from the victim.

### Official description

Absolute path traversal vulnerability in front-end/dir.php in mini-pub 0.3 and earlier allows remote attackers to list arbitrary directories via a full pathname in the sDir parameter.

Weakness: CWE-22 (Improper Limitation of a Pathname to a Restricted Directory)

## Which versions are affected by CVE-2008-5883?

It affects 1 product.


Products: Mini-Pub Mini-Pub.

## How do I fix CVE-2008-5883?

No fix has been published for CVE-2008-5883 yet. Limit exposure of the affected software until one is available.

## Is CVE-2008-5883 being exploited?

It is not confirmed as exploited in the wild, but public exploit code for CVE-2008-5883 exists.

Public exploit code:

- mini-pub 0.3 - Local Directory Traversal / File Disclosure (exploitdb)

## Other vulnerabilities in n/a

- [CVE-2008-5580](https://insights.sbomify.com/CVE-2008-5580/): Command injection in n/a (high 7.5)
- [CVE-2008-5581](https://insights.sbomify.com/CVE-2008-5581/): Code injection in n/a (high 7.5)
- [CVE-2008-5936](https://insights.sbomify.com/CVE-2008-5936/): Path traversal in n/a (medium 5.0)
- [CVE-2008-5579](https://insights.sbomify.com/CVE-2008-5579/): Path traversal in n/a (medium 5.0)

## Fix prompt for AI coding agents

```text
Check this codebase for CVE-2008-5883 and fix it if it is affected.

What it is: CVE-2008-5883 is a high-severity path traversal vulnerability in n/a, published on 12 Jan 2009. 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-2008-5883 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-2008-5883/ (Markdown: https://insights.sbomify.com/CVE-2008-5883/index.md)
```

## Sources

- CVE record: https://www.cve.org/CVERecord?id=CVE-2008-5883
- NVD: https://nvd.nist.gov/vuln/detail/CVE-2008-5883
- OSV: https://osv.dev/vulnerability/CVE-2008-5883

---
From sbomify Insights: https://insights.sbomify.com/CVE-2008-5883/
Summaries are generated and may contain mistakes; the official description above is the record.