# CVE-2023-34108: Manipulation of Internal Dovecot Variables in mailcow via crafted Passwords > An authenticated attacker can manipulate internal Dovecot variables via crafted passwords, leading to unauthorized access or security control bypasses. - **Severity:** High 8.8 (`CVSS:3.1/AV:N/AC:L/PR:L/UI:N/S:U/C:H/I:H/A:H`) - **Exploited in the wild:** Not known - **Login needed:** Any signed-in user - **Attackable:** Over the internet - **Victim action needed:** Not needed - **Fix available:** No - **Published:** 7 Jun 2023 - **Updated:** 6 Jan 2025 - **Also known as:** GHSA-mhh4-qchc-pv22 ## What is CVE-2023-34108? CVE-2023-34108 is a high-severity command injection vulnerability in mailcow-dockerized, published on 7 Jun 2023. Any signed-in user can exploit it over the network, with no action from the victim. ### Official description mailcow is a mail server suite based on Dovecot, Postfix and other open source software, that provides a modern web UI for user/server administration. A vulnerability has been discovered in mailcow which allows an attacker to manipulate internal Dovecot variables by using specially crafted passwords during the authentication process. The issue arises from the behavior of the `passwd-verify.lua` script, which is responsible for verifying user passwords during login attempts. Upon a successful login, the script returns a response in the format of "password=", indicating the successful authentication. By crafting a password with additional key-value pairs appended to it, an attacker can manipulate the returned string and influence the internal behavior of Dovecot. For example, using the password "123 mail_crypt_save_version=0" would cause the `passwd-verify.lua` script to return the string "password=123 mail_crypt_save_version=0". Consequently, Dovecot will interpret this string and set the internal variables accordingly, leading to unintended consequences. This vulnerability can be exploited by an authenticated attacker who has the ability to set their own password. Successful exploitation of this vulnerability could result in unauthorized access to user accounts, bypassing security controls, or other malicious activities. This issue has been patched in version `2023-05a`. Users are advised to upgrade. There are no known workarounds for this vulnerability. Weakness: CWE-78 (Improper Neutralization of Special Elements used in an OS Command) ## Which versions are affected by CVE-2023-34108? It affects 1 product. Products: Mailcow Mailcow\. ## How do I fix CVE-2023-34108? No fix has been published for CVE-2023-34108 yet. Limit exposure of the affected software until one is available. ## Is CVE-2023-34108 being exploited? There is no known exploitation of CVE-2023-34108 in the wild and no public exploit code. ## Other vulnerabilities in mailcow-dockerized - [CVE-2025-53909](https://insights.sbomify.com/CVE-2025-53909/): mailcow: dockerized vulnerable to SSTI in Quota and Quarantine Notification Template (critical 9.1) - [CVE-2024-24760](https://insights.sbomify.com/CVE-2024-24760/): Mailcow Docker Container Exposure to Local Network (high 8.8) - [CVE-2022-31138](https://insights.sbomify.com/CVE-2022-31138/): OS Command Injection in mailcow (high 8.8) - [CVE-2022-31245](https://insights.sbomify.com/CVE-2022-31245/): Command injection in n/a (high 8.8) - [CVE-2017-8928](https://insights.sbomify.com/CVE-2017-8928/): Cross-site request forgery in n/a (high 8.8) ## Fix prompt for AI coding agents ```text Check this codebase for CVE-2023-34108 and fix it if it is affected. What it is: CVE-2023-34108 is a high-severity command injection vulnerability in mailcow-dockerized, published on 7 Jun 2023. Any signed-in user can exploit it over the network, with no action from the victim. Exploitation: There is no known exploitation of CVE-2023-34108 in the wild and no public exploit code. Affected product: mailcow-dockerized. 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-2023-34108/ (Markdown: https://insights.sbomify.com/CVE-2023-34108/index.md) ``` ## Sources - CVE record: https://www.cve.org/CVERecord?id=CVE-2023-34108 - NVD: https://nvd.nist.gov/vuln/detail/CVE-2023-34108 - OSV: https://osv.dev/vulnerability/CVE-2023-34108 --- From sbomify Insights: https://insights.sbomify.com/CVE-2023-34108/ Summaries are generated and may contain mistakes; the official description above is the record.