CVE-2026-126135: SMTP and POP3 response injection when using STARTTLS
If an attacker was able to perform a man-in-the-middle attack on an SMTP or POP3 server connection using STARTTLS, the attacker could inject server responses before the TLS handshake completed. Thunderbird would process these responses after the handshake, as if they had been received from the server over the encrypted connection. This could be used to make Thunderbird report a different outcome for sending or fetching mail, and to show attacker-controlled text in error messages. The encrypted connection itself was not compromised, and credentials were not exposed. Connections using SSL/TLS instead of STARTTLS were not affected.
Affected Software
Remediation
Recommended actions to resolve this vulnerability, in priority order.
- Upgrade
Upgrade to a fixed release to a version that resolves this vulnerability.
Fixed in 160 - Upgrade
Upgrade to a fixed release to a version that resolves this vulnerability.
Fixed in 153.7 - Upgrade
Upgrade
Thunderbirdto a version that resolves this vulnerability.Fixed in 160 - Upgrade
Upgrade
Thunderbirdto a version that resolves this vulnerability.Fixed in 153.7
Event History
Peer vulnerabilities
Found alongside the following vulnerabilities.
- CVE-2026-126132
- CVE-2026-126133
- CVE-2026-126134
- CVE-2026-126135
- CVE-2026-126136
- CVE-2026-120572
- CVE-2026-124852
- CVE-2026-124853
- CVE-2026-124854
- CVE-2026-124855
- CVE-2026-124856
- CVE-2026-124857
- CVE-2026-124858
- CVE-2026-124859
- CVE-2026-124860
- CVE-2026-124861
- CVE-2026-124862
- CVE-2026-124863
- CVE-2026-124864
- CVE-2026-124865
- CVE-2026-124866
- CVE-2026-124867
- CVE-2026-124868
- CVE-2026-124869
- CVE-2026-124870
- CVE-2026-124871
- CVE-2026-124872
- CVE-2026-124873
- CVE-2026-124874
- CVE-2026-124875
- CVE-2026-124876
- CVE-2026-124877
- CVE-2026-124878
- CVE-2026-124879
- CVE-2026-124880
- CVE-2026-124881
- CVE-2026-124882
- CVE-2026-124883
- CVE-2026-124884
- CVE-2026-124885
- CVE-2026-124886
- CVE-2026-124887
- CVE-2026-124888
- CVE-2026-124889
- CVE-2026-124890
- CVE-2026-124891
- CVE-2026-124892
- CVE-2026-124893
- CVE-2026-124894
- CVE-2026-124895
- CVE-2026-124896
- CVE-2026-124897
- CVE-2026-124898
- CVE-2026-124899
- CVE-2026-124900
- CVE-2026-124901
- CVE-2026-124902
- CVE-2026-124903
- CVE-2026-124904
- CVE-2026-124905
- CVE-2026-124906
- CVE-2026-124907
- CVE-2026-124908
- CVE-2026-124909
- CVE-2026-124910
- CVE-2026-124912
- CVE-2026-124913
- CVE-2026-124914
- CVE-2026-124915
- CVE-2026-124917
- CVE-2026-124918
- CVE-2026-124919
- CVE-2026-124920
- CVE-2026-124921
- CVE-2026-124922
- CVE-2026-124923
- CVE-2026-124924
- CVE-2026-124925
- CVE-2026-124926
- CVE-2026-124927
- CVE-2026-124928
- CVE-2026-124929
- CVE-2026-124930
- CVE-2026-124931
- CVE-2026-124932
- CVE-2026-124933
- CVE-2026-124934
- CVE-2026-124935
- CVE-2026-124936
- CVE-2026-124938
- CVE-2026-124939
- CVE-2026-124940
- CVE-2026-124941
- CVE-2026-124942
- CVE-2026-124943
- CVE-2026-124944
- CVE-2026-124945
- CVE-2026-124946
- CVE-2026-124947
- CVE-2026-124948
- CVE-2026-124949
- CVE-2026-124950
- CVE-2026-124951
- CVE-2026-118007
- CVE-2026-118019
- CVE-2026-118021
- CVE-2026-118024
Frequently Asked Questions
Which mail account configurations are affected?
Only SMTP or POP3 connections configured to use STARTTLS are affected. Connections using SSL/TLS instead of STARTTLS are not affected.
What must an attacker be able to do to exploit this issue?
The attacker must be able to perform a man-in-the-middle attack on the SMTP or POP3 server connection and inject responses before the TLS handshake completes.
What is the practical impact of a successful attack?
An attacker can cause Thunderbird to report a different result for sending or fetching mail and can place attacker-controlled text in error messages. The encrypted connection itself is not compromised, and credentials are not exposed.