CVE-2008-3868 in Interact
Summary
by MITRE
Cross-site request forgery (CSRF) vulnerability in Interact 2.4.1 allows remote attackers to hijack the authentication of super administrators for requests that create super administrator accounts.
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Analysis
by VulDB Data Team • 10/13/2018
The CVE-2008-3868 vulnerability represents a critical cross-site request forgery flaw within Interact 2.4.1 content management system that enables remote attackers to exploit administrative privileges through deceptive web requests. This vulnerability specifically targets the authentication mechanisms of super administrators, allowing malicious actors to create new super administrator accounts without proper authorization. The flaw exists in the application's failure to implement proper anti-CSRF measures, making it susceptible to attacks where an authenticated user is tricked into executing unintended actions through maliciously crafted requests.
The technical implementation of this vulnerability stems from the absence of anti-CSRF tokens or similar validation mechanisms within the account creation forms and administrative interfaces of Interact 2.4.1. When a super administrator performs legitimate administrative tasks, the application should verify that the request originates from an authorized source and is not being manipulated by an attacker. However, the system fails to validate the authenticity of requests attempting to create new super administrator accounts, allowing attackers to construct malicious web pages or emails that, when visited by an authenticated super administrator, automatically submit requests to create new administrative accounts. This fundamental flaw in request validation creates a pathway for privilege escalation attacks where attackers can gain complete control over the system.
The operational impact of this vulnerability is severe and far-reaching for organizations using Interact 2.4.1, as it fundamentally compromises the security model of the entire system. Once an attacker successfully exploits this vulnerability, they can create new super administrator accounts with full privileges, effectively granting them complete control over the content management system, user accounts, and system configurations. This allows for unauthorized data modification, content injection, user account manipulation, and potential data exfiltration. The vulnerability is particularly dangerous because it does not require any special privileges or access to the system's administrative interface, making it accessible to any remote attacker who can convince a super administrator to visit a malicious webpage. The attack can be executed through various vectors including email phishing, compromised websites, or social engineering tactics that exploit the trust relationship between the super administrator and the system.
Security mitigations for CVE-2008-3868 should focus on implementing robust anti-CSRF protection mechanisms within the application. The most effective approach involves deploying unique, unpredictable tokens for each user session that must be validated with every administrative request, particularly those involving account creation or privilege changes. Organizations should implement the principle of least privilege by ensuring that administrative functions require explicit confirmation through multi-factor authentication or additional verification steps. Additionally, the application should validate the referer header and implement proper session management controls to prevent cross-site request manipulation. This vulnerability aligns with CWE-352, which specifically addresses cross-site request forgery vulnerabilities, and maps to ATT&CK technique T1078.004 for valid accounts and T1566 for social engineering tactics that exploit user trust relationships. Organizations should also consider implementing web application firewalls to detect and block suspicious requests, while ensuring that all administrative interfaces require explicit user confirmation before executing privilege escalation operations. Regular security audits and penetration testing should be conducted to identify similar vulnerabilities in other application components that may not have been properly secured against cross-site request forgery attacks.