CVE-2005-4530 in EPay
Summary
by MITRE
Multiple cross-site scripting (XSS) vulnerabilities in AlstraSoft EPay Enterprise 3.0 (formerly DoPays) allow remote attackers to inject arbitrary web script or HTML via multiple unspecified parameters in (1) profile.htm, (2) card.htm, (3) bank.htm, (4) subscriptions.htm, (5) send.htm, (6) request.htm, (7) forgot.htm, (8) escrow.htm, (9) donations.htm, and (10) products.htm.
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Analysis
by VulDB Data Team • 07/15/2018
The vulnerability identified as CVE-2005-4530 represents a critical cross-site scripting flaw affecting AlstraSoft EPay Enterprise 3.0, formerly known as DoPays payment processing software. This vulnerability manifests across multiple web pages within the application's interface including profile.htm, card.htm, bank.htm, subscriptions.htm, send.htm, request.htm, forgot.htm, escrow.htm, donations.htm, and products.htm. The flaw stems from insufficient input validation and output encoding mechanisms that fail to properly sanitize user-supplied data before incorporating it into dynamic web content. Attackers can exploit this weakness by injecting malicious scripts or HTML code through unspecified parameters in these web pages, potentially compromising the security of users interacting with the payment processing system.
The technical nature of this vulnerability aligns with CWE-79, which specifically addresses cross-site scripting vulnerabilities in web applications. This classification indicates that the application fails to properly validate or encode user input before rendering it in web pages, creating an environment where malicious code can execute in the context of other users' browsers. The attack vector is particularly concerning as it affects multiple entry points within the application, providing attackers with numerous potential targets for exploitation. The vulnerability's impact extends beyond simple script injection, as it could potentially enable session hijacking, credential theft, or redirection to malicious websites, especially given that this is a payment processing application handling sensitive financial data.
The operational impact of CVE-2005-4530 is severe for both the organization operating the EPay Enterprise system and its users. Attackers could exploit these vulnerabilities to steal user session cookies, potentially gaining unauthorized access to customer accounts and financial information. The presence of XSS vulnerabilities in payment-related pages such as card.htm, bank.htm, and escrow.htm creates particularly dangerous attack scenarios where financial transactions could be intercepted or manipulated. Additionally, the vulnerability could be leveraged to deface the payment portal, redirect users to phishing sites, or inject malicious code that persists across multiple user sessions. Given that this is a payment processing system, the potential for financial fraud and data breaches makes this vulnerability particularly critical from a business continuity and regulatory compliance perspective.
Organizations utilizing AlstraSoft EPay Enterprise 3.0 should immediately implement comprehensive input validation and output encoding mechanisms to address this vulnerability. The recommended mitigation strategy involves implementing strict sanitization of all user inputs across the affected web pages, with particular attention to the parameters used in profile.htm, card.htm, bank.htm, subscriptions.htm, send.htm, request.htm, forgot.htm, escrow.htm, donations.htm, and products.htm. Security measures should include the implementation of Content Security Policy headers, proper HTML encoding of dynamic content, and the adoption of parameterized queries to prevent script injection. From an ATT&CK framework perspective, this vulnerability maps to techniques involving web application exploitation and session management compromise, requiring organizations to strengthen their defensive measures against persistent threats. Regular security assessments and penetration testing should be conducted to identify similar vulnerabilities in other components of the payment processing infrastructure, while also ensuring that all web applications undergo thorough security reviews to prevent future occurrences of such cross-site scripting vulnerabilities.