CVE-2003-1440: SpamProbe 0.8a allows remote attackers to cause a denial of service (crash) via HTML e-mail with newline chara

Routine

MEDIUM 4.3DOWNGRADE

CVE-2003-1440 is a medium-severity flaw (CVSS 4.3) affecting spamprobe. Below: why it ranks where it does, which versions are affected, what to do, and the exact commands.

SpamProbe 0.8a allows remote attackers to cause a denial of service (crash) via HTML e-mail with newline characters within an href tag, which is not properly handled by certain regular expressions.

Why this priority

No elevated risk signals yet

No fix is published yet: follow the downgrade or mitigation steps.

Risk facts

CVSS score	4.3 (Medium)
EPSS exploit chance	1.2% (top 31%)
CISA exploited list	No
Weakness	CWE-20
Published	2003-12-31
Last modified	2026-06-16

Publisher (CNA): MITRE · Vendor: burton computer corporation

Last updated 2026-06-16 · Sources: CVE Program, NVD, CISA KEV, EPSS and vendor advisories · How we score

Am I affected?

Timeline

2003-12-31 05:00 UTCPublished CVE record published
2026-06-16 22:04 UTCUpdated Record last modified

burton computer corporation spamprobe DOWNGRADE

Affected: 0.8a

Fixed in: no fixed release known

Safe to downgrade to: a release before 0.8a

1. Check installed version

apt-cache policy spamprobe || rpm -q spamprobe || spamprobe --version

2. No fixed release: DOWNGRADE to a release before 0.8a (Debian / Ubuntu)

apt-cache madison spamprobe sudo apt install spamprobe=<VERSION_BEFORE_0.8a> sudo apt-mark hold spamprobe

2. No fixed release: DOWNGRADE (RHEL / Amazon Linux / Fedora)

dnf --showduplicates list spamprobe sudo dnf downgrade spamprobe-<VERSION_BEFORE_0.8a> sudo dnf versionlock add spamprobe

Downgrade risk

Downgrading can break dependent software and may reopen older bugs. Read the distro advisory first and test on a non-production host.

After downgrade

Restart the service, and keep the package held until a fixed release ships.

Verify at the official source NVD · CVE Program · Report a problem with this page
Scores and fixes here are computed automatically from those and other public sources. Confirm with the vendor advisory before changing production systems.

Quick answers

How do I fix CVE-2003-1440?

spamprobe: downgrade or apply the listed mitigation. Exact commands for each OS are on this page.

Is CVE-2003-1440 being exploited?

CVE-2003-1440 is not on the CISA Known Exploited Vulnerabilities list at the time of the last update. Check again, as this can change.

What does CVE-2003-1440 affect?

CVE-2003-1440 affects spamprobe. Severity is medium (CVSS 4.3). SpamProbe 0.8a allows remote attackers to cause a denial of service (crash) via HTML e-mail with newline characters within an href tag, which is not properly handled by certain regular expressions.

How urgent is CVE-2003-1440?

Priority 32/100. No elevated risk signals yet.

References

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