This bizarre email flaw is leaking corporate secrets to anyone who buys the right domain

A recent investigation by WIRED has uncovered a concerning email security flaw that is inadvertently exposing corporate secrets to anyone who owns the right domain. Researchers Cory Solovevich and Mike Sheward discovered that seemingly harmless email addresses, such as noreply and deleteduser, can act as unexpected gateways to sensitive company information when the associated domains are not properly controlled.

Companies often use placeholder addresses for dormant accounts, assuming no one can access the destination. However, if an outside party registers one of these domains, the supposedly dead-end emails can suddenly be received by the new domain owner. This issue has been identified in over 7,000 domains, with 328 featuring catch-all inboxes capable of accepting messages sent to various addresses within those domains.

Although not all of these domains are actively leaking sensitive information, the ease with which forgotten email configurations can become a security problem highlights the potential risk. The researchers have been notifying affected organizations, and Solovevich has purchased more than 30 domains to prevent malicious actors from exploiting the issue.

The investigation underscores the importance of properly managing email configurations, as even organizations with robust network security can still be vulnerable if sensitive emails are sent to domains that can be purchased by others.