CVE-2007-3017 in contentserver
Summary
by MITRE
The WYSIWYG editor applet in activeWeb contentserver CMS before 5.6.2964 only filters malicious tags from articles sent to admin/applets/wysiwyg/rendereditor.asp, which allows remote authenticated users to inject arbitrary JavaScript via a request to admin/worklist/worklist_edit.asp.
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Analysis
by VulDB Data Team • 05/24/2025
The vulnerability identified as CVE-2007-3017 affects the activeWeb content management system prior to version 5.6.2964, specifically targeting the WYSIWYG editor applet component. This issue represents a classic cross-site scripting vulnerability that arises from improper input validation and sanitization within the CMS's administrative interface. The flaw exists in the rendering process where malicious content is processed through the wysiwyg/rendereditor.asp endpoint, which fails to adequately filter potentially dangerous HTML tags and script elements. Attackers can exploit this weakness by crafting malicious requests that bypass the initial filtering mechanism, allowing them to inject arbitrary JavaScript code into the administrative interface.
The technical implementation of this vulnerability stems from the asymmetric security controls implemented within the CMS architecture. While the system performs some filtering on the wysiwyg/rendereditor.asp endpoint, it does not apply the same level of sanitization to the worklist_edit.asp endpoint where the malicious payload is actually submitted. This inconsistency creates a window of opportunity for authenticated attackers to bypass the security measures and inject malicious scripts. The vulnerability specifically targets the administrative workflow where content editors submit articles through the worklist interface, making it particularly dangerous as it allows attackers to manipulate content that will be rendered in the admin environment.
The operational impact of this vulnerability extends beyond simple script injection, as it provides attackers with the ability to execute arbitrary code within the administrative context of the CMS. This represents a significant privilege escalation risk since the attacker needs only authenticated access to the system to exploit the vulnerability. The attack vector involves a two-step process where the malicious content is first submitted through worklist_edit.asp and then processed through the vulnerable rendereditor.asp endpoint. This vulnerability aligns with CWE-79 which describes improper neutralization of input during web page generation, and it demonstrates the principle of least privilege violation where authenticated users can gain unauthorized capabilities. The exploitation of this vulnerability could lead to complete administrative compromise, data exfiltration, and potential lateral movement within the organization's network infrastructure.
Mitigation strategies for this vulnerability require immediate patching of the activeWeb CMS to version 5.6.2964 or later, which contains the necessary security fixes. Organizations should also implement additional defensive measures including strict input validation at multiple layers of the application, comprehensive output encoding for all dynamic content, and regular security audits of web applications. The remediation approach should follow the principle of defense in depth, ensuring that even if one security control fails, other layers remain effective. Security teams should also conduct thorough vulnerability assessments to identify similar issues in other applications and implement web application firewalls to detect and block malicious payloads. This vulnerability demonstrates the critical importance of maintaining up-to-date software versions and implementing comprehensive security controls throughout the entire application lifecycle, as recommended by the ATT&CK framework's persistence and privilege escalation techniques.