CVE-2008-6831 in JIRA
Summary
by MITRE
Multiple cross-site scripting (XSS) vulnerabilities in Atlassian JIRA Enterprise Edition 3.13 allow remote attackers to inject arbitrary web script or HTML via the (1) fullname (Full Name) parameter in the ViewProfile page or (2) returnUrl parameter in a form, as demonstrated using secure/AddComment!default.jspa (aka "Add Comment").
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Analysis
by VulDB Data Team • 05/24/2025
The vulnerability identified as CVE-2008-6831 represents a critical cross-site scripting flaw in Atlassian JIRA Enterprise Edition version 3.13, exposing organizations to significant web application security risks. This vulnerability manifests through two distinct attack vectors that exploit insufficient input validation and output encoding mechanisms within the application's user profile and authentication flow components. The first vector targets the fullname parameter within the ViewProfile page, while the second exploits the returnUrl parameter in various forms, including the secure/AddComment!default.jspa endpoint. These attack surfaces demonstrate the application's failure to properly sanitize user-supplied data before rendering it in web responses, creating opportunities for malicious actors to execute arbitrary JavaScript code within the context of authenticated user sessions.
The technical exploitation of this vulnerability occurs through the injection of malicious scripts into parameters that are subsequently rendered without adequate sanitization or encoding. When users navigate to affected pages or interact with forms containing these vulnerable parameters, the malicious code becomes part of the web page's dynamic content and executes in the browser of any user who views the compromised page. This behavior aligns with CWE-79, which specifically addresses cross-site scripting vulnerabilities where untrusted data is improperly handled during web page generation. The vulnerability's impact extends beyond simple script execution as it enables attackers to potentially steal session cookies, modify page content, redirect users to malicious sites, or perform actions on behalf of authenticated users. The specific targeting of the AddComment form demonstrates how vulnerabilities in authentication and authorization flows can be leveraged to compromise user sessions and potentially escalate privileges within the application environment.
The operational implications of CVE-2008-6831 are severe for organizations relying on JIRA for issue tracking and project management, as successful exploitation could lead to complete compromise of user accounts and unauthorized access to sensitive project data. Attackers could leverage this vulnerability to inject malicious scripts that persist across user sessions, potentially enabling long-term surveillance of project activities and unauthorized modifications to issues, comments, and user profiles. The vulnerability's presence in the authentication flow through the returnUrl parameter particularly exposes organizations to session hijacking attacks and privilege escalation attempts, as demonstrated by the ATT&CK framework's T1078.1.1 technique for valid accounts and T1566.001 for credential harvesting. Organizations using this vulnerable version of JIRA face significant risk of data breaches and unauthorized access to confidential business information, especially in environments where JIRA serves as a central repository for sensitive project documentation and development artifacts.
Mitigation strategies for this vulnerability should prioritize immediate patching of the affected JIRA version to the latest available security updates from Atlassian, which would address the root cause through proper input validation and output encoding implementations. Organizations should implement comprehensive web application firewalls and content security policies to detect and block suspicious script injection attempts, while also conducting thorough security assessments of all user input handling mechanisms within the application. The remediation process should include validating all parameters against established safe character sets and implementing proper HTML escaping for all dynamic content generation, aligning with industry best practices outlined in OWASP's top ten security risks and the secure coding guidelines recommended in ISO/IEC 27034. Additionally, organizations should establish regular security testing procedures including automated scanning and manual penetration testing to identify similar vulnerabilities in other web applications and ensure ongoing protection against evolving threat vectors.