CVE-2008-6433 in Sava CMS
Summary
by MITRE
Cross-site scripting (XSS) vulnerability in index.cfm in Blue River Interactive Group Sava CMS before 5.0.122 allows remote attackers to inject arbitrary web script or HTML via the keywords parameter in a search action.
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Analysis
by VulDB Data Team • 12/07/2017
The vulnerability identified as CVE-2008-6433 represents a critical cross-site scripting flaw within the Blue River Interactive Group Sava CMS platform, specifically affecting versions prior to 5.0.122. This issue resides in the index.cfm script and manifests when processing search functionality through the keywords parameter, creating a persistent security weakness that enables malicious actors to execute unauthorized code within the context of affected user browsers. The vulnerability operates by failing to properly sanitize or encode user input before incorporating it into dynamic web content, thereby allowing attackers to inject malicious scripts that can be executed when other users view the search results page.
From a technical perspective, this XSS vulnerability falls under CWE-79 which specifically addresses Cross-Site Scripting flaws in web applications. The flaw occurs because the application does not adequately validate or escape the keywords parameter input, permitting attackers to craft malicious payloads that exploit the web application's failure to implement proper input sanitization mechanisms. When a victim accesses a search result page containing malicious script code injected through the keywords parameter, the browser executes this code within the victim's session context, potentially leading to session hijacking, credential theft, or redirection to malicious sites. The vulnerability demonstrates a classic reflected XSS pattern where user input flows directly into the application's output without proper encoding or validation.
The operational impact of this vulnerability extends beyond simple script execution, as it provides attackers with the capability to establish persistent malicious presence within the targeted environment. An attacker could craft search queries containing malicious JavaScript payloads that would execute whenever other users browse the search results, potentially leading to complete session compromise and unauthorized access to sensitive administrative functions. The vulnerability affects the core search functionality of the CMS, making it particularly dangerous as search operations are frequently used and often contain user-generated content. This flaw could enable attackers to steal cookies, modify content, redirect users to phishing sites, or even execute arbitrary commands if the CMS has additional vulnerabilities.
Mitigation strategies for this vulnerability should prioritize immediate patching to version 5.0.122 or later, which contains the necessary input validation and output encoding fixes. Organizations should implement comprehensive input sanitization measures, including proper HTML encoding of all user-supplied data before rendering it in web pages, and employ Content Security Policy (CSP) headers to prevent unauthorized script execution. Additionally, regular security testing should include thorough XSS vulnerability assessments of all input fields and parameters within web applications, following established frameworks such as OWASP Testing Guide and ATT&CK framework techniques for web application exploitation. The vulnerability underscores the critical importance of input validation and output encoding practices in preventing client-side attacks, particularly in content management systems where user-generated content processing is common.