PT-2026-33992 · Freescout Help Desk · Freescout

Published 2026-04-21 · Updated 2026-04-21 · CVE-2026-40498

NVD

CVSS v4.0

8.9

High

AV:N/AC:L/AT:N/PR:N/UI:N/VC:H/VI:H/VA:L/SC:N/SI:N/SA:N/E:P/CR:X/IR:X/AR:X/MAV:X/MAC:X/MAT:X/MPR:X/MUI:X/MVC:X/MVI:X/MVA:X/MSC:X/MSI:X/MSA:X/S:X/AU:X/R:X/V:X/RE:X/U:X

FreeScout is a free self-hosted help desk and shared mailbox. Prior to version 1.8.213, an unauthenticated attacker can access diagnostic and system tools that should be restricted to administrators. The /system/cron endpoint relies on a static MD5 hash derived from the APP KEY, which is exposed in the response and logs. Accessing these endpoints reveals sensitive server information (Full Path Disclosure), process IDs, and allows for Resource Exhaustion (DoS) by triggering heavy background tasks repeatedly without any rate limiting. The cron hash is generated using md5(APP KEY . 'web cron hash'). Since this hash is often transmitted via GET requests, it is susceptible to exposure in server logs, browser history, and proxy logs. Furthermore, the lack of rate limiting on these endpoints allows for automated resource exhaustion (DoS) and brute-force attempts. Version 1.8.213 fixes the issue.

Fix

Information Disclosure

Improper Access Control

Allocation of Resources Without Limits

Weakness Enumeration

CWE-200

CWE-284

CWE-770

Related Identifiers

CVE-2026-40498

Affected Products

Freescout

References · 4

• https://nvd.nist.gov/vuln/detail/CVE-2026-40498 · Security Note
• https://github.com/freescout-help-desk/freescout/releases/tag/1.8.213 · Note
• https://github.com/freescout-help-desk/freescout/commit/b1d6c2c601a6ec3626ab13e679607b5084dfbd38 · Note
• https://github.com/freescout-help-desk/freescout/security/advisories/GHSA-5jw5-q9j7-4rxc · Note