CVE-2008-2066 in miniBB
Summary
by MITRE
Cross-site scripting (XSS) vulnerability in bb_admin.php in miniBB 2.2a allows remote attackers to inject arbitrary web script or HTML via the whatus parameter in a searchusers2 action. NOTE: it was later reported that other versions before 3.0.1 are also vulnerable.
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Analysis
by VulDB Data Team • 09/23/2018
The vulnerability identified as CVE-2008-2066 represents a classic cross-site scripting flaw within the miniBB 2.2a bulletin board software, specifically affecting the bb_admin.php administrative component. This vulnerability resides in the searchusers2 action where the whatus parameter fails to properly sanitize user input before incorporating it into the web page response. The flaw allows remote attackers to execute malicious scripts within the context of other users' browsers, potentially compromising user sessions and data integrity.
This XSS vulnerability operates under CWE-79 which categorizes improper neutralization of input during web page generation as a fundamental weakness in web application security. The technical implementation involves the application failing to validate or escape special characters in the whatus parameter, enabling attackers to inject malicious JavaScript code that executes when other users view the search results page. The vulnerability affects the administrative interface of miniBB, making it particularly dangerous as it could allow unauthorized individuals to gain elevated privileges or manipulate administrative functions.
The operational impact of this vulnerability extends beyond simple script injection, as it provides attackers with potential access to administrative controls and user data. When users navigate to pages containing the malicious payload, their browsers execute the injected code, which could redirect them to malicious sites, steal session cookies, or perform actions on their behalf. The vulnerability affects not only miniBB 2.2a but also numerous earlier versions, indicating a widespread issue in the software's input handling mechanisms. This widespread vulnerability exposure increases the risk profile significantly as attackers can target installations across multiple versions without requiring specific version enumeration.
Security professionals should implement input validation and output encoding measures to prevent this vulnerability, including implementing proper sanitization of all user-supplied data before rendering it in web pages. The ATT&CK framework categorizes this as a web application attack vector under the technique of code injection, specifically targeting the execution of malicious code in user browsers. Organizations should also consider implementing content security policies and regular security audits of their web applications to identify similar input validation flaws. The vulnerability highlights the importance of proper parameter validation in administrative interfaces where user input directly influences page content generation.