CVE-2008-7296 in Safari
Summary
by MITRE
Apple Safari cannot properly restrict modifications to cookies established in HTTPS sessions, which allows man-in-the-middle attackers to overwrite or delete arbitrary cookies via a Set-Cookie header in an HTTP response, related to lack of the HTTP Strict Transport Security (HSTS) includeSubDomains feature, aka a "cookie forcing" issue.
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Analysis
by VulDB Data Team • 01/13/2018
The vulnerability described in CVE-2008-7296 represents a critical security flaw in Apple Safari's handling of cookie management within HTTPS sessions. This issue stems from Safari's insufficient implementation of HTTP Strict Transport Security (HSTS) mechanisms, specifically the missing includeSubDomains directive that should prevent insecure HTTP connections from being established after an initial secure HTTPS session. The flaw creates a dangerous scenario where attackers can manipulate cookie data through man-in-the-middle attacks, effectively bypassing the security measures that should protect session integrity.
The technical root cause of this vulnerability lies in Safari's failure to properly enforce transport security policies when transitioning between secure and insecure connections. When an HTTPS session is established, the browser should maintain strict security boundaries that prevent any subsequent HTTP communications from modifying session cookies. However, in this case, Safari allows HTTP responses to include Set-Cookie headers that can overwrite or delete cookies previously set during HTTPS sessions. This behavior violates fundamental web security principles and creates a pathway for attackers to inject malicious cookie data into user sessions.
From an operational perspective, this vulnerability enables attackers to perform cookie forcing attacks that can completely compromise user sessions and potentially escalate privileges within web applications. The man-in-the-middle attack vector allows adversaries to intercept network traffic and inject malicious Set-Cookie headers that modify existing session cookies, effectively hijacking user sessions or creating unauthorized access points. This issue is particularly dangerous because it operates at the browser level, affecting all web applications that rely on cookie-based authentication and session management.
The impact of this vulnerability extends beyond simple session hijacking to include potential data theft, unauthorized access to sensitive applications, and the ability to bypass authentication mechanisms. Security researchers have classified this issue as a significant weakness in web browser security implementations, with the flaw directly related to CWE-310 and CWE-312 categories that address cryptographic weaknesses and insecure cookie handling. The vulnerability also aligns with ATT&CK technique T1566 which covers credential access through phishing and social engineering attacks that can be facilitated by such cookie manipulation flaws.
Organizations and users should implement immediate mitigations including updating to patched versions of Safari, enabling HSTS headers on all web applications, and ensuring that browsers properly enforce transport security policies. Network administrators should consider implementing additional monitoring for suspicious cookie modifications and deploy security tools that can detect and prevent man-in-the-middle attacks. The vulnerability highlights the critical importance of proper HSTS implementation and demonstrates how missing security features in web browsers can create widespread vulnerabilities across the entire web ecosystem.