CVE-2004-1510 in Webcalendar
Summary
by MITRE
WebCalendar allows remote attackers to gain privileges by modifying critical parameters to (1) view_entry.php or (2) upcoming.php.
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Analysis
by VulDB Data Team • 07/15/2017
The vulnerability described in CVE-2004-1510 represents a critical access control flaw in the WebCalendar application that enables remote attackers to escalate their privileges through parameter manipulation. This issue affects the authentication and authorization mechanisms within the web calendar system, allowing unauthorized users to bypass normal access restrictions and gain elevated permissions. The vulnerability specifically targets two key files in the application: view_entry.php and upcoming.php, which are fundamental components responsible for displaying calendar entries and upcoming events respectively. These files contain critical parameters that, when modified by an attacker, can alter the application's behavior and grant access to restricted functionality.
The technical nature of this vulnerability aligns with CWE-284, which addresses improper access control in software applications. Attackers can exploit this weakness by crafting malicious HTTP requests that modify URL parameters passed to the vulnerable scripts. When the application processes these modified parameters without proper validation or authentication checks, it executes code with elevated privileges or displays information that should be restricted to authorized users only. The flaw essentially allows privilege escalation through parameter tampering, where an unauthenticated or low-privileged user can manipulate the application's logic flow to access restricted resources or perform administrative functions.
From an operational perspective, this vulnerability creates significant security risks for organizations relying on WebCalendar for scheduling and calendar management. The impact extends beyond simple information disclosure, as attackers could potentially modify calendar entries, delete important events, or access sensitive personal information stored in the calendar system. The remote nature of the attack means that threat actors do not require physical access to the system or local network privileges to exploit this vulnerability. This makes the attack surface particularly wide and the potential for widespread compromise much greater, especially in environments where calendar systems contain confidential business information or personal data.
The exploitation of this vulnerability can be mapped to several ATT&CK techniques including T1078 for valid accounts and T1566 for social engineering, though the primary technique would be T1068 for exploit for privilege escalation. Organizations should implement comprehensive mitigations including input validation, parameter sanitization, and robust authentication mechanisms. The recommended approaches involve implementing proper access controls, ensuring that all parameters passed to sensitive scripts are validated against expected values, and implementing role-based access control systems. Additionally, regular security audits and code reviews should be conducted to identify similar parameter manipulation vulnerabilities in other applications. The vulnerability highlights the importance of defense in depth strategies and the necessity of validating all user inputs to prevent unauthorized access to system resources.