CVE-2005-1502 in MidiCart PHP Shopping Cart
Summary
by MITRE
Cross-site scripting (XSS) vulnerability in MidiCart PHP Shopping Cart allows remote attackers to inject arbitrary web script or HTML via the (1) searchstring parameter to search_list.php or the (2) secondgroup or (3) maingroup parameters to item_list.php.
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Analysis
by VulDB Data Team • 07/25/2017
The vulnerability identified as CVE-2005-1502 represents a critical cross-site scripting flaw within the MidiCart PHP Shopping Cart application, exposing web applications to persistent security threats that can compromise user data and system integrity. This vulnerability resides in the application's handling of user-supplied input parameters, specifically targeting the search_list.php and item_list.php scripts that form core components of the shopping cart functionality. The flaw allows malicious actors to inject arbitrary web scripts or HTML code into the application's response, creating a persistent vector for attack that can affect multiple users simultaneously.
The technical implementation of this vulnerability stems from inadequate input validation and output sanitization within the MidiCart PHP application's parameter processing logic. When users submit search queries through the searchstring parameter in search_list.php or when navigating product categories using the secondgroup and maingroup parameters in item_list.php, the application fails to properly sanitize these inputs before incorporating them into dynamic web page content. This lack of proper input filtering creates an environment where attacker-controlled data can be executed as client-side scripts within the context of other users' browsers. The vulnerability specifically maps to CWE-79, which defines Cross-Site Scripting as a weakness where applications fail to properly validate or escape user-supplied data before incorporating it into dynamically generated HTML content, making it susceptible to malicious script injection attacks.
The operational impact of this vulnerability extends far beyond simple data theft, creating a comprehensive attack surface that can facilitate various malicious activities within the compromised environment. Attackers can leverage this XSS vulnerability to steal session cookies, redirect users to malicious websites, deface the shopping cart interface, or execute unauthorized transactions. The persistent nature of this vulnerability means that once exploited, malicious scripts can affect all users who subsequently access the affected pages, potentially compromising thousands of user sessions and transactions. The vulnerability's presence in core shopping cart functionality makes it particularly dangerous as it can be exploited during normal shopping activities, increasing the likelihood of successful attacks and reducing the probability that users will recognize the malicious behavior. This vulnerability directly aligns with ATT&CK technique T1531, which describes the use of cross-site scripting to execute malicious code in the context of a victim's browser session.
Mitigation strategies for CVE-2005-1502 must address both immediate remediation and long-term security hardening of the affected application. The primary solution involves implementing comprehensive input validation and output encoding mechanisms that properly sanitize all user-supplied parameters before they are processed or displayed within web pages. This includes implementing proper HTML entity encoding for all dynamic content and employing strict input validation that rejects or removes potentially malicious characters and script tags. Organizations should also implement Content Security Policy headers to prevent unauthorized script execution, deploy web application firewalls to detect and block suspicious input patterns, and conduct regular security assessments to identify similar vulnerabilities in other application components. Additionally, the application should be updated to a patched version that addresses this specific XSS vulnerability, as the original MidiCart PHP Shopping Cart version containing this flaw is no longer supported and lacks security updates to address such critical vulnerabilities. The remediation process should also include comprehensive security training for developers to prevent similar issues in future application development cycles, emphasizing the importance of input validation and output encoding practices throughout the software development lifecycle.