CVE-2023-2227 is a critical-severity (CVSS 9.1) CWE-285 vulnerability in modoboa. 1 public exploit or proof-of-concept reference is indexed, so weaponization risk is real. A fix is available for modoboa — see the affected versions and patch details below.
Improper Authorization in modoboa/modoboa
Exploitation Status
Proof-of-concept exploit code exists
- CISA’s SSVC triage found public proof-of-concept exploit code for this CVE, though no confirmed active exploitation.
- CISA assesses this as automatable — exploitation doesn’t require manual, per-target effort, which raises the odds of mass scanning and opportunistic attacks.
- A successful exploit gives an attacker total control of the affected component, not partial access.
Exploitation and automatability from CISA’s SSVC triage for CVE-2023-2227.
EPSS Exploitation Probability
Probability of exploitation in the next 30 days, from FIRST.org EPSS.
How urgent is this, really
Where this sits among everything scored
Real-World Exposure
modoboaReal-time download stats are indexed for npm and PyPI packages. This vulnerability affects PyPI packages — download data is not available via public APIs for these ecosystems.
Description
In modoboa prior to 2.1.0, sending a GET request to the endpoint /api/v2/parameters/core/ returns sensitive information without any authentication or authorization.
Affected Packages
| Ecosystem | Package | Vulnerable range | Fix |
|---|---|---|---|
| 🐍PyPI | modoboa | all versions | 2.1.0pip install --upgrade 'modoboa==2.1.0' |
Affected Products
modoboamodoboaResearch use only. For defensive security, authorized penetration testing, and academic research only. Never execute exploit code against systems without explicit written authorization.
Detection & mitigation playbook
Open-source dependencyDetect
Scan your dependency tree (package-lock.json, pnpm-lock.yaml, requirements.txt, go.sum, etc.) for modoboa, including transitive dependencies — a direct dependency you never call can still pull in a vulnerable version.
Fix
Update modoboa to 2.1.0 or later, then make sure no transitive (indirect) dependency still pins the vulnerable range — O3 confirms CVE-2023-2227 is resolved across your whole dependency graph.
Workarounds
If you can't upgrade right away: gate or disable the affected feature, validate untrusted input at the boundary, and avoid passing attacker-controlled data into the vulnerable path. O3's runtime protection blocks exploitation in production as an interim safeguard until the upgrade lands.
How to detect CVE-2023-2227
A community-maintained Nuclei template exists for this CVE. You can scan for it directly:
nuclei -id cve-2023-2227 -u https://target- Template
- Modoboa < 2.1.0 - Improper Authorization
- Severity
- critical
- Impact
- Unauthenticated attackers can access sensitive configuration parameters including default passwords and authentication settings through the API endpoint, potentially compromising the entire email management system.
- Remediation
- Update Modoboa to version 2.1.0 or later that implements proper authorization checks for the parameters API endpoint.
Template by ProjectDiscovery nuclei-templates (ritikchaddha, princechaddha), MIT licensed. View the full template. Scan only systems you are authorised to test.
Frequently Asked Questions
Is CVE-2023-2227 in your dependencies?
Find it across PyPI, including transitive dependencies.