Freescout
CVE-2024-29185
CRITICAL
Vulnerability Assessment
| Weakness |
CWE
OWASP Top 10:2025
A05:2025 - Injection
ASVS 5.0
V1 - Encoding and Sanitization OS command sanitization, avoid shell exec
MITRE ATT&CK
2 techniques across 1 tactic: Execution The technique list with ATT&CK links and the kill-chain view is part of the Basic plan and up. |
| Impact | CVSS score of 9.0 (CRITICAL). Attack characteristics: network attack vector, high complexity, no privileges required, no user interaction not required. Public proof-of-concept exploit code is available. |
| Exploit ScenarioDerived | A remote attacker could execute arbitrary operating system commands on the host by sending crafted requests to the affected application. No authentication is required to exploit this vulnerability. |
Get an e-mail when this CVE is exploited, patched or re-scored. Free account.
Alert meAnalysisAI
FreeScout is a self-hosted help desk and shared mailbox. Rated critical severity (CVSS 9.0), this vulnerability is remotely exploitable, no authentication required. Public exploit code available and no vendor patch available.
RemediationAI
No vendor patch is available at time of analysis. Monitor vendor advisories for updates. Avoid passing user input to shell commands. Use language-specific APIs instead of shell execution. Apply strict input validation with allowlists.
Affects your stack
Find out whether the stacks and servers you run are on an affected version.
Checking this CVE against your own stacks and servers is part of the Basic plan and up.
Technical ContextAI · show details
This vulnerability is classified as OS Command Injection (CWE-78), which allows attackers to execute arbitrary operating system commands on the host. FreeScout is a self-hosted help desk and shared mailbox. Versions prior to 1.8.128 are vulnerable to OS Command Injection in the /public/tools.php source file. The value of the php_path parameter is being executed as an OS command by the shell_exec function, without validating it. This allows an adversary to execute malicious OS commands on the server. A practical demonstration of the successful command injection attack extracted the /etc/passwd file of the server. This represented the complete compromise of the server hosting the FreeScout application. This attack requires an attacker to know the App_Key of the application. This limitation makes the Attack Complexity to be High. If an attacker gets hold of the App_Key, the attacker can compromise the Complete server on which the application is deployed. Version 1.8.128 contains a patch for this issue. Affected products include: Freescout. Version information: prior to 1.8.128.
Know when Freescout gets its next vulnerability
- Watch products and get an email when something new is published
- Check this CVE against your own stack and servers
- Exploit and PoC references, threat intelligence from 22 sources
No credit card · 7-day full trial
Severity by source
AV:N/AC:H/PR:N/UI:N/S:C/C:H/I:H/A:H
Primary rating from NVD · only source for this CVE.
CVSS VectorNVD
DescriptionNVD
FreeScout is a self-hosted help desk and shared mailbox. Versions prior to 1.8.128 are vulnerable to OS Command Injection in the /public/tools.php source file. The value of the php_path parameter is being executed as an OS command by the shell_exec function, without validating it. This allows an adversary to execute malicious OS commands on the server. A practical demonstration of the successful command injection attack extracted the /etc/passwd file of the server. This represented the complete compromise of the server hosting the FreeScout application. This attack requires an attacker to know the App_Key of the application. This limitation makes the Attack Complexity to be High. If an attacker gets hold of the App_Key, the attacker can compromise the Complete server on which the application is deployed. Version 1.8.128 contains a patch for this issue.
Threat Intelligence Overview
NVD
CVE.org
EPSS
GitHub
How this decision was reached
The engine reads each signal below and applies a fixed list of rules from top to bottom. The first rule that matches sets the recommended action – like a statement, every line is shown.
What every action level means
SSVC AssessmentENISA
Priority Score
Attack Technique
OS command injection occurs when an application passes unsanitized user input directly into system shell commands.
Affected Products (CPE)NVD
File upload bypass in FreeScout 1.8.206 — patch bypass for CVE-2026-27636. PoC and patch available. CVSS 10.0.
Remote code execution in FreeScout prior to version 1.8.206 allows authenticated users to upload `.htaccess` files that
Predictable password reset tokens in FreeScout help desk before 1.8.206. Weak random number generation allows attackers
Anonymous account takeover in FreeScout help desk before 1.8.224 lets an unauthenticated attacker seize the lowest-id ac
FreeScout is a free help desk and shared inbox built with PHP's Laravel framework. Rated high severity (CVSS 8.6), this
FreeScout is a self-hosted help desk and shared mailbox. Rated high severity (CVSS 8.0), this vulnerability is remotely
FreeScout is an open source help desk and shared inbox built with PHP. Rated high severity (CVSS 7.1), this vulnerabilit
FreeScout is a free, self-hosted help desk and shared mailbox. Rated medium severity (CVSS 6.3), this vulnerability is r
FreeScout is a free, self-hosted help desk and shared mailbox. Rated medium severity (CVSS 6.1), this vulnerability is r
A stored cross-site scripting (XSS) vulnerability exists in FreeScout help desk software versions 1.8.208 and below, whe
Arbitrary file write in FreeScout (prior to 1.8.215) allows authenticated administrators to achieve remote code executio
Unauthenticated account takeover in FreeScout versions prior to 1.8.217 allows remote attackers to gain permanent access
Exploit-DB