CVE-2007-5211 in Peakflow SP
Summary
by MITRE
Multiple cross-site scripting (XSS) vulnerabilities in Arbor Networks Peakflow SP 3.5.1 before patch 14, and 3.6.1 before patch 5, when scope accounts are enabled, allow remote attackers to inject arbitrary web script or HTML via unspecified vectors involving GET or POST requests. NOTE: the provenance of this information is unknown; the details are obtained solely from third party information.
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Analysis
by VulDB Data Team • 10/30/2017
The vulnerability identified as CVE-2007-5211 represents a critical cross-site scripting flaw affecting Arbor Networks Peakflow SP versions 3.5.1 and 3.6.1 prior to specific patches. This vulnerability specifically manifests when scope accounts are enabled within the system, creating an attack surface that remote adversaries can exploit to inject malicious web scripts or HTML content. The flaw operates through unspecified vectors that involve both GET and POST HTTP request methods, indicating that the vulnerability is not limited to a single request type but rather encompasses multiple attack pathways. The security implications of this vulnerability are significant as it allows attackers to execute arbitrary code within the context of a user's browser session, potentially leading to complete compromise of user sessions and unauthorized access to sensitive network monitoring data.
The technical nature of this vulnerability aligns with CWE-79, which specifically addresses cross-site scripting flaws in web applications. This classification indicates that the vulnerability stems from improper input validation and output encoding within the Peakflow SP application's web interface. When scope accounts are enabled, the system likely processes user-provided input through web forms or URL parameters without adequate sanitization or encoding mechanisms. Attackers can leverage this weakness by crafting malicious payloads that exploit the application's failure to properly validate or escape user-supplied data before rendering it in web pages. The fact that both GET and POST requests are vulnerable suggests that the application's input handling is inconsistent across different HTTP methods, creating multiple potential entry points for exploitation.
The operational impact of this vulnerability extends beyond simple data theft or session hijacking. Given that Peakflow SP is a network monitoring and analysis tool, successful exploitation could enable attackers to access sensitive network traffic data, manipulate monitoring configurations, or even redirect network flows. The scope account functionality, which typically provides elevated privileges for network analysis, becomes particularly dangerous when compromised as it could grant attackers deeper access to network infrastructure monitoring capabilities. This vulnerability represents a significant risk to organizations relying on Arbor Networks for network security monitoring, as attackers could potentially remain undetected while accessing confidential network information or modifying monitoring data to obscure malicious activities.
Organizations affected by this vulnerability should prioritize immediate remediation through the application of the vendor patches mentioned in the advisory, specifically patch 14 for version 3.5.1 and patch 5 for version 3.6.1. The mitigation strategy should also include network segmentation and monitoring of web traffic to detect potential exploitation attempts. Security teams should implement input validation controls and output encoding mechanisms to prevent similar vulnerabilities from emerging in other applications within their environment. From an ATT&CK framework perspective, this vulnerability maps to techniques involving web application exploitation and credential access, potentially enabling lateral movement within network monitoring systems. Regular security assessments and vulnerability scanning should be conducted to identify similar input validation flaws in other network monitoring tools and web applications to maintain overall security posture and prevent exploitation of similar weaknesses.