CVE-2009-0708 in SemanticScuttle
Summary
by MITRE
Multiple cross-site request forgery (CSRF) vulnerabilities in SemanticScuttle before 0.91 allow remote attackers to (1) hijack the authentication of administrators via unknown vectors or (2) hijack the authentication of arbitrary users via vectors involving the profile page.
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Analysis
by VulDB Data Team • 10/29/2018
The CVE-2009-0708 vulnerability represents a critical cross-site request forgery issue affecting SemanticScuttle versions prior to 0.91. This vulnerability falls under the CWE-352 category, which specifically addresses Cross-Site Request Forgery weaknesses in software applications. The flaw enables remote attackers to exploit the authentication mechanisms of the web application through sophisticated manipulation of user sessions and requests.
The technical implementation of this CSRF vulnerability stems from the application's failure to properly validate and authenticate requests originating from authenticated sessions. Attackers can leverage this weakness to perform unauthorized actions by tricking authenticated users into executing malicious requests without their knowledge or consent. The vulnerability specifically targets the authentication handling mechanisms within SemanticScuttle, allowing attackers to hijack administrative sessions or gain unauthorized access to arbitrary user accounts through manipulation of the profile page functionality.
The operational impact of this vulnerability extends beyond simple session hijacking, as it provides attackers with elevated privileges within the application's administrative interface. When attackers successfully exploit the CSRF vectors targeting administrator sessions, they gain complete control over the application's management functions, including user account manipulation, content modification, and system configuration changes. The arbitrary user hijacking capability further amplifies the threat surface, as attackers can compromise any user account within the system regardless of their administrative status.
The attack vectors for this vulnerability typically involve the creation of malicious web pages or embedded content that automatically submits requests to the vulnerable SemanticScuttle application. These attacks often utilize the profile page as a target because it contains functionality that modifies user settings and authentication parameters. The vulnerability's exploitation requires minimal technical expertise and can be automated through various web-based attack frameworks, making it particularly dangerous in environments where users frequently access untrusted websites.
Security professionals should implement comprehensive CSRF protection mechanisms including the use of anti-forgery tokens that are generated per session and validated on each request. The implementation of proper request origin validation and user session management controls are essential mitigation strategies. Organizations should also consider implementing web application firewalls and regular security assessments to identify and remediate similar vulnerabilities. This vulnerability highlights the critical importance of maintaining up-to-date security practices and following the principle of least privilege in web application development. The ATT&CK framework categorizes this vulnerability under the T1566 technique for credential access through social engineering, emphasizing the need for robust application-level protections against session manipulation attacks.