Description
XSS was discovered in SquirrelMail through 1.4.22 and 1.5.x through 1.5.2. Due to improper handling of RCDATA and RAWTEXT type elements, the built-in sanitization mechanism can be bypassed. Malicious script content from HTML e-mail can be executed within the application context via crafted use of (for example) a NOEMBED, NOFRAMES, NOSCRIPT, or TEXTAREA element.
Fixed in Linux distributions
Distributions backport fixes, so the version that fixes this vulnerability differs per release — upgrade to at least the version shown. From the distributions' security trackers and advisories.
Debian
Security tracker ↗| Release | Package | Fixed in | Advisory |
|---|---|---|---|
| Debian 8 | squirrelmail | 2:1.4.23~svn20120406-2+deb8u4 | DLA-1868-1 |
Ubuntu
Security tracker ↗| Release | Package | Fixed in | Advisory |
|---|---|---|---|
| Ubuntu 16.04 LTS | squirrelmail | 2:1.4.23~svn20120406-2+deb8u3ubuntu0.16.04.2 | USN-4669-1 |
Show 1 more (older releases, extended support, other products)Fewer releases
| Release | Package | Fixed in | Advisory |
|---|---|---|---|
| Ubuntu Pro 14.04 LTS | squirrelmail | 2:1.4.23~svn20120406-2+deb8u3ubuntu0.14.04.1~esm1 | — |
Advisories 2
- DLA-1868-1 squirrelmail - security update Debian Security (DSA / DLA) · Mar 9, 2026
- USN-4669-1 squirrelmail vulnerability Ubuntu Security Notices (USN) · Feb 10, 2026
References
- https://www.syss.de/fileadmin/dokumente/Publikationen/Advisories/SYSS-2019-016.txt
- 20190701 [SYSS-2019-016] SquirrelMail script filter bypass/XSS mailing-list
- http://packetstormsecurity.com/files/153495/SquirrelMail-1.4.22-Cross-Site-Scripting.html
- 20190730 [SYSS-2019-016] SquirrelMail script filter bypass/XSS (update) mailing-list
- [debian-lts-announce] 20190801 [SECURITY] [DLA 1868-1] squirrelmail security update mailing-list