CVE-2006-0245 in CubeCart
Summary
by MITRE
Multiple cross-site scripting (XSS) vulnerabilities in CubeCart 3.0.7-pl1 allow remote attackers to inject arbitrary web script or HTML via the (3) redir, (4) productId, (5) docId, (6) act, and (7) catId parameters in index.php; and the (8) username field in a login action in index.php. NOTE: the cart.php/redir and index.php/searchStr vectors are already covered by CVE-2005-3152.
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Analysis
by VulDB Data Team • 07/07/2021
The vulnerability described in CVE-2006-0245 represents a critical cross-site scripting flaw affecting CubeCart version 3.0.7-pl1, a popular e-commerce platform that was widely deployed in web applications during the mid-2000s. This vulnerability falls under the Common Weakness Enumeration category CWE-79 which specifically addresses improper neutralization of input during web page generation, making it a classic example of an XSS attack vector that has been documented since the early days of web application security. The flaw allows remote attackers to inject malicious scripts into web pages viewed by other users, potentially leading to session hijacking, credential theft, and unauthorized actions within the application context.
The technical implementation of this vulnerability occurs through multiple parameter injection points within the application's request handling mechanism. Specifically, the redir, productId, docId, act, and catId parameters in the index.php file create injection points where attacker-controlled input is directly reflected back to users without proper sanitization or encoding. Additionally, the username field in the login action of index.php provides another vector for malicious script injection. These parameters are processed within the application's web interface without adequate input validation or output encoding, allowing attackers to craft malicious payloads that execute in the context of other users' browsers. The vulnerability is particularly concerning because it affects core navigation and authentication mechanisms, potentially enabling attackers to manipulate user sessions or redirect them to malicious sites.
The operational impact of this vulnerability extends beyond simple script injection, as it provides attackers with the capability to establish persistent malicious presence within the application environment. When exploited, these XSS vectors can enable attackers to steal session cookies, modify user interface elements, redirect users to phishing sites, or perform unauthorized transactions within the e-commerce platform. The attack surface is significant because the affected parameters span across product browsing, document viewing, category navigation, and user authentication flows, meaning that successful exploitation could compromise various aspects of the application's functionality. According to the ATT&CK framework, this vulnerability maps to T1531 which describes the use of malicious scripts to gain access to user sessions and perform unauthorized actions within web applications.
Mitigation strategies for this vulnerability require immediate implementation of input validation and output encoding measures across all affected parameters. Organizations should implement proper sanitization of user input through the use of allowlists for acceptable characters and values, combined with appropriate encoding of output data before rendering in web pages. The recommended approach includes implementing Content Security Policy headers to limit script execution, using parameterized queries for database interactions, and ensuring that all user-supplied data is properly escaped when rendered in HTML contexts. Additionally, the application should implement proper session management practices, including secure cookie attributes and regular session invalidation mechanisms. Regular security audits and penetration testing should be conducted to identify similar vulnerabilities in other application components, as this represents a common pattern of insecure input handling that has been documented across numerous web application platforms throughout the industry's history.