An unauthenticated user can exploit the \/system\/cron endpoint in FreeScout to bypass normal authentication controls, exposing a static MD5 hash derived from the APP_KEY that is returned in responses and logs. This disclosure reveals sensitive server details such as full file paths, process IDs, and other configuration information, and also allows an attacker to repeatedly trigger heavy background jobs without rate limiting, enabling denial‑of‑service or brute‑force attempts. The flaw aligns with CWE‑200 (Information Exposure), CWE‑284 (Improper Authorization) and CWE‑770 (Out‑of‑Bound Resource Allocation).

FreeScout self‑hosted help‑desk deployments of any version earlier than 1.8.213 are affected, including the freescout‑help‑desk:freescout product. The vulnerability subsides starting with the 1.8.213 release, which removes the insecure hash calculation and adds proper request throttling.

With a CVSS score of 8.9 the issue is classified as high severity; EPSS data is not available, but the absence of authentication and rate limiting provides a clear remote attack path for any host able to reach the affected endpoint. KEV does not list the vulnerability, indicating no known widespread exploitation at this time. The likely vector is a simple HTTP request to \/system\/cron from an external attacker, which can harvest the hash, enumerate server details, and exhaust resources by looping background tasks.