CVE-2007-1142 in Magic News Plus
Summary
by MITRE
Cross-site scripting (XSS) vulnerability in Magic News Plus 1.0.2 allows remote attackers to inject arbitrary web script or HTML via the link_parameters parameter in (1) news.php and (2) n_layouts.php.
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Analysis
by VulDB Data Team • 10/11/2025
The CVE-2007-1142 vulnerability represents a critical cross-site scripting flaw in Magic News Plus version 1.0.2, a content management system designed for news publishing and management. This vulnerability resides in the application's handling of user input parameters, specifically the link_parameters variable that is processed in two key files: news.php and n_layouts.php. The flaw enables remote attackers to execute malicious scripts within the context of other users' browsers, potentially leading to session hijacking, data theft, or unauthorized actions performed on behalf of victims. The vulnerability is classified under CWE-79 as Improper Neutralization of Input During Web Page Generation, which is a fundamental weakness in web application security where user-supplied data is not properly sanitized before being rendered in web pages.
The technical implementation of this vulnerability occurs when the application fails to validate or escape the link_parameters input parameter before incorporating it into dynamically generated HTML content. When an attacker crafts a malicious payload and submits it through the news.php or n_layouts.php scripts, the application processes this input without proper sanitization mechanisms, allowing the injected JavaScript code to execute in the victim's browser context. This type of vulnerability is particularly dangerous because it can be exploited through various attack vectors including email links, forum posts, or any mechanism that allows user input to reach the vulnerable application endpoints. The attack chain typically involves the attacker crafting a URL with malicious script content in the link_parameters parameter, which when visited by a victim, executes the malicious code within the victim's browser session.
The operational impact of this vulnerability extends beyond simple script execution, as it can enable sophisticated attack scenarios that compromise user security and application integrity. An attacker could potentially steal session cookies, redirect users to malicious sites, deface the news portal, or perform actions on behalf of authenticated users. The vulnerability affects all users of Magic News Plus 1.0.2 who interact with the affected scripts, making it a widespread concern for any organization relying on this CMS version. From an attacker's perspective, this vulnerability aligns with ATT&CK technique T1566.001 for Initial Access through Phishing and T1531 for Account Access via Credential Access, as it provides a pathway for unauthorized access and privilege escalation. The vulnerability also represents a failure in the application's input validation and output encoding practices, which are fundamental security controls that should be implemented at multiple layers of the application architecture.
Mitigation strategies for CVE-2007-1142 require immediate implementation of proper input validation and output encoding mechanisms across the affected application components. Organizations should implement strict parameter validation that rejects or sanitizes any input containing potentially malicious script content, particularly focusing on common script tags such as <script>, javascript:, and vbscript:. The recommended approach includes implementing Content Security Policy headers to restrict script execution, performing HTML entity encoding on all user-supplied data before rendering, and ensuring that the application validates input parameters against a strict whitelist of acceptable characters and formats. Additionally, the affected Magic News Plus version should be upgraded to a patched release or replaced with a more secure alternative, as version 1.0.2 is no longer supported and likely contains additional vulnerabilities. Security teams should also implement regular security scanning of web applications to identify similar input validation flaws and establish secure coding practices that prevent such vulnerabilities from being introduced during development phases. This vulnerability underscores the critical importance of following secure coding guidelines and maintaining up-to-date security patches as outlined in industry standards such as OWASP Top Ten and NIST cybersecurity frameworks.