CVE intelligence and bounded remediation

CVE-2023-2868 — Barracuda Networks ESG Appliance Improper Input Validation Vulnerability

Critical CVSS 9.8 CISA KEV

A remote command injection vulnerability exists in the Barracuda Email Security Gateway (appliance form factor only) product effecting versions 5.1.3.001-9.2.0.006. The vulnerability arises out of a failure to comprehensively sanitize the processing of .tar file (tape archives). The vulnerability stems from incomplete input validation of a user-supplied .tar file as it pertains to the names of the files contained within the archive. As a consequence, a remote attacker can specifically format these file names in a particular manner that will result in remotely executing a system command through Perl's qx operator with the privileges of the Email Security Gateway product. This issue was fixed as part of BNSF-36456 patch. This patch was automatically applied to all customer appliances.

Severity
Critical
CVSS
9.8 (3.1)
Published
2023-05-24
CISA KEV
Known exploited
Ecosystem
operating-system
Weaknesses
CWE-20, CWE-77

Affected products

  • barracuda / email_security_gateway_300_firmware
  • barracuda / email_security_gateway_400_firmware
  • barracuda / email_security_gateway_600_firmware
  • barracuda / email_security_gateway_800_firmware
  • barracuda / email_security_gateway_900_firmware

Matched remediation archetype

Command, code, expression, and template injection

This catalog composition supplies bounded fallback guidance. Explicitly reviewed curated workflows load with the complete record below.

Check exposure

  • Trace untrusted values to process execution, interpreters, evaluators, template engines, dynamic imports, and administrative scripting features.
  • Determine whether the affected path is reachable across each trust boundary and which service account or host privilege it inherits.
  • Review configuration for optional execution features, unsafe compatibility modes, and shell invocation.

Remediate safely

  • Replace string-built commands or evaluated code with fixed operations and structured argument APIs that do not invoke a shell.
  • Use strict allowlists for operation identifiers and reject unexpected input before it reaches any interpreter.
  • Update the affected component and add inert regression tests covering metacharacters, encoding variants, and alternate request paths.

Authoritative sources

Complete CVE record and remediation plan

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