GHSA-58mj-pw57-4vm2
MEDIUMGHSA-58mj-pw57-4vm2 is a medium-severity (CVSS 6.1) Cross-site Scripting (XSS) vulnerability in phpmailer/phpmailer. 2 public exploit references exist, so weaponization risk is real. O3 Security confirms whether GHSA-58mj-pw57-4vm2 is actually reachable in your code before you act, and blocks exploitation at runtime until you patch.
Cross-site scripting in PHPMailer
Real-World Exposure
phpmailer/phpmailerReal-time download stats are indexed for npm and PyPI packages. This vulnerability affects Packagist packages — download data is not available via public APIs for these ecosystems.
Description
PHPMailer versions prior to 5.2.24 (released July 26th 2017) have an XSS vulnerability in one of the code examples, CVE-2017-11503. The code_generator.phps example did not filter user input prior to output. This file is distributed with a .phps extension, so it it not normally executable unless it is explicitly renamed, and the file is not included when PHPMailer is loaded through composer, so it is safe by default. There was also an undisclosed potential XSS vulnerability in the default exception handler (unused by default). Patches for both issues kindly provided by Patrick Monnerat of the Fedora Project.
Impact
PHPMailer 5.2.23 has XSS in the "From Email Address" and "To Email Address" fields of code_generator.php.
Patches
Fixed in 5.2.24
Workarounds
None.
References
https://nvd.nist.gov/vuln/detail/CVE-2017-11503
For more information
If you have any questions or comments about this advisory:
- Open a private issue in the PHPMailer project
Affected Packages
| Ecosystem | Package | Vulnerable range | Fix |
|---|---|---|---|
| 🐘Packagist | phpmailer/phpmailer | ≥ 5.0.0&&< 5.2.24 | 5.2.24 |
Research 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 phpmailer/phpmailer. O3's reachability analysis confirms whether the vulnerable code path is actually invoked in your application, so you act on real exposure instead of every transitive match.
Fix
Update phpmailer/phpmailer to 5.2.24 or later, then make sure no transitive (indirect) dependency still pins the vulnerable range — O3 confirms GHSA-58mj-pw57-4vm2 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 O3 protects you
O3 pinpoints whether GHSA-58mj-pw57-4vm2 is reachable in your code and exactly where to fix it, then blocks exploitation in production at runtime until the patched version is deployed.
Tailored to GHSA-58mj-pw57-4vm2. Runtime protection reduces exposure until a permanent patch is applied and verified — it complements patching, it doesn't replace it.
Frequently Asked Questions
Is GHSA-58mj-pw57-4vm2 in your dependencies?
O3 detects GHSA-58mj-pw57-4vm2 across Packagist dependencies and uses function-level reachability to confirm whether the vulnerable code path is actually reachable — not just present. No false positives.