hMailServer: Improper Certificate Validation
CVE-2026-126611 is a high-severity improper certificate validation vulnerability in hMailServer from Progressive Robot, with a CVSS 3.1 base score of 7.0 out of 10. It can be exploited with local access to the system by an attacker with a low-privileged account, without any action from a user. Affected hMailServer versions: 6.3.4 through 6.3.7. The record does not name a fixed version, so check the vendor advisory. There is no confirmed exploitation so far. EPSS estimates a 0.08% chance of exploitation within 30 days, which is low compared with other CVEs.
High severity with no evidence of exploitation so far.
What to do
- Check which version of hMailServer you run against the affected versions below, and install the vendor's latest release.
Affected products and versions
| Vendor | Product | Affected versions | Fixed in |
|---|---|---|---|
| Progressive Robot | hMailServer | 6.3.4 through 6.3.7 | Not stated |
Version data comes from the organisation that assigned the CVE. Confirm against the vendor advisory before deciding you are unaffected.
How the severity score breaks down
- Attack vector
- LocalThe attacker needs local access or must trick a user into running something.
- Attack complexity
- HighSuccess depends on conditions outside the attacker's control.
- Privileges required
- LowA basic user account is enough.
- User interaction
- NoneNo action by a victim is required.
- Scope
- UnchangedImpact stays within the vulnerable component.
- Confidentiality
- HighAll data handled by the component can be read.
- Integrity
- HighData or code can be modified at will.
- Availability
- HighThe component can be taken down completely.
Vector: CVSS:3.1/AV:L/AC:H/PR:L/UI:N/S:U/C:H/I:H/A:H. Scored by CNA (gitlab.com).
Official description
Progressive Robot hMailServer 6.3.4 through 6.3.7, with a MySQL or MariaDB database, TlsMode=verify-full and no TlsCaFile, does not verify the database server's certificate's issuer or name when the connection is one that MariaDB Connector/C treats as local - Server= set to 127.0.0.1, ::1 or localhost (on Linux a Unix socket), to . on Windows (a named pipe), or to a comma-separated list of servers that holds such an element - which allows a local attacker who can stand in for the database server, for example by listening on its port while it is stopped or restarting, to receive the database sign-in, the password included, and to read and modify the traffic between hMailServer and its database. hMailServer applied verify-full by turning the client's certificate verification on without a CA file, but MariaDB Connector/C 3.4.1 and later, on a connection they treat as local and with no CA file, accept any certificate within its validity period that is self-signed or sent with its own root, for any name (Connector/C 3.4.2 to 3.4.10 also one whose issuer they cannot find), so the client accepted the certificate an impostor made, asked no proof of the password and allowed a switch to an authentication method that sends the password unhashed, while hmailserver --check-database said the certificate had been checked against the system's trust store and the application log that it had been checked. The Windows builds bundle Connector/C 3.4.9 (6.3.4 to 6.3.6) and 3.4.11 (6.3.7); on Linux the distribution's client is used, and Connector/C 3.3 and 3.4.0 and Oracle's MySQL client are not affected. The configuration is not the default: TlsMode defaults to prefer, which checks no certificate.
Source: the CVE record as published by its numbering authority, via NVD and CVE.org.
The underlying weakness: Improper Certificate Validation
The product does not validate, or incorrectly validates, a certificate.
How developers prevent this class of flaw
- Certificates should be carefully managed and checked to assure that data are encrypted with the intended owner's public key.
- If certificate pinning is being used, ensure that all relevant properties of the certificate are fully validated before the certificate is pinned, including the hostname.
More Improper Certificate Validation vulnerabilities (CWE-295)
Timeline
- CVE record published.
- Record last changed materially (score, affected products, status or references).
References
Patches and release notes
Other references
Other vulnerabilities in hMailServer
- 7.3 High severity
- 7.5 High severity
- 7.3 High severity
- 7.5 High severity
- 8.8 High severity
- 7.5 High severity
Recent Improper Certificate Validation vulnerabilities
- 7.5 High severity
- 8.1 High severity
- 8.9 High severity
- 8.7 High severity
- 8.7 High severity
- 8.7 High severity
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