CVE-2008-2768 in Absolute Poll Manager Xe
Summary
by MITRE
Cross-site scripting (XSS) vulnerability in admin/search.asp in Xigla Poll Manager XE allows remote authenticated users with administrator role privileges to inject arbitrary web script or HTML via unspecified vectors ("all fields").
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Analysis
by VulDB Data Team • 11/16/2017
The CVE-2008-2768 vulnerability represents a critical cross-site scripting flaw within the Xigla Poll Manager XE administrative interface, specifically in the admin/search.asp component. This vulnerability affects remote authenticated users who possess administrator role privileges, creating a significant security risk for systems utilizing this poll management solution. The flaw manifests when administrators process search queries through the interface, as the application fails to properly sanitize user input across all fields, allowing malicious script injection. This vulnerability directly aligns with CWE-79, which defines cross-site scripting as the failure to properly escape output, making it a classic example of insecure input handling in web applications.
The technical implementation of this vulnerability stems from inadequate input validation and output encoding mechanisms within the Xigla Poll Manager XE administrative search functionality. When administrators perform searches using the search.asp page, the application processes all input fields without proper sanitization, creating opportunities for malicious actors to inject arbitrary HTML or JavaScript code. This occurs because the application does not employ proper context-aware encoding or validation techniques for data that flows from user input to the web response. The vulnerability is particularly dangerous because it requires only administrative privileges to exploit, meaning that attackers who can obtain administrator credentials can leverage this flaw to execute malicious code within the context of the victim administrator's session.
The operational impact of CVE-2008-2768 extends beyond simple script injection, as it provides attackers with the capability to perform session hijacking, steal administrative credentials, and potentially gain complete control over the affected system. Once an attacker successfully injects malicious code through the search functionality, they can execute persistent attacks that may include redirecting administrators to phishing sites, stealing session cookies, or even modifying poll data and configurations. This vulnerability operates under the ATT&CK framework as a code injection technique, specifically mapping to T1059.007 for scripting languages and T1566 for phishing with malicious attachments, as the injected scripts can serve as delivery mechanisms for additional payloads. The exploitation of this vulnerability can lead to complete system compromise when combined with other attack vectors.
Mitigation strategies for CVE-2008-2768 should focus on implementing proper input validation and output encoding across all user-facing interfaces, particularly administrative components. Organizations should ensure that all user input is properly sanitized using context-appropriate encoding techniques, such as HTML entity encoding for output contexts. The implementation of Content Security Policy (CSP) headers can provide additional defense-in-depth measures to prevent execution of unauthorized scripts. Regular security audits and code reviews should be conducted to identify similar vulnerabilities in other components of the application, as this flaw demonstrates poor input handling practices that may exist elsewhere in the codebase. Patch management procedures should be prioritized to ensure timely deployment of vendor-provided security updates, and access controls should be strictly enforced to limit administrative privileges to only necessary personnel, reducing the attack surface for this type of vulnerability.