CVE-2009-1849 in Prtg Traffic Grapher6.0.5.416
Summary
by MITRE
Cross-site scripting (XSS) vulnerability in the Monitor_Bandwidth function in PRTG Traffic Grapher 6.2.2.977 and earlier allows remote attackers to inject arbitrary web script or HTML via unspecified vectors.
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Analysis
by VulDB Data Team • 12/10/2017
The CVE-2009-1849 vulnerability represents a critical cross-site scripting flaw discovered in PRTG Traffic Grapher version 6.2.2.977 and earlier, which exposes organizations to significant web application security risks. This vulnerability specifically affects the Monitor_Bandwidth function within the PRTG monitoring platform, a widely deployed network monitoring solution used by enterprises to track network performance and bandwidth utilization. The flaw enables remote attackers to execute malicious scripts in the context of a victim's browser, potentially leading to session hijacking, data theft, or unauthorized administrative actions within the monitoring environment.
The technical implementation of this XSS vulnerability stems from insufficient input validation and output sanitization within the Monitor_Bandwidth function. Attackers can exploit this weakness by crafting malicious input through unspecified vectors that ultimately get rendered in the web interface without proper HTML escaping or script validation. This allows attackers to inject arbitrary web scripts or HTML code that executes when other users view the affected monitoring pages. The vulnerability exists because the application fails to properly sanitize user-supplied data before incorporating it into dynamically generated web content, creating a persistent vector for malicious code execution.
From an operational standpoint, this vulnerability poses severe risks to organizations relying on PRTG Traffic Grapher for network monitoring and management. The impact extends beyond simple script injection, as attackers could potentially escalate privileges within the monitoring environment, access sensitive network data, or manipulate monitoring configurations to hide malicious activities. Given that PRTG is often deployed with administrative privileges and contains sensitive network information, successful exploitation could provide attackers with comprehensive visibility into monitored networks. The vulnerability affects both the web interface and potentially the underlying monitoring data, making it particularly dangerous for security operations centers that depend on accurate monitoring information.
Organizations should implement immediate mitigations including upgrading to PRTG Traffic Grapher versions that address this vulnerability, which typically involves applying the vendor-provided security patches or updating to versions 6.2.3.978 or later. Network segmentation and web application firewalls can provide additional protection layers while awaiting patch deployment. Security teams should also implement input validation controls at multiple levels, including web application level sanitization and output encoding to prevent malicious scripts from executing. The vulnerability aligns with CWE-79, which specifically addresses cross-site scripting flaws, and represents a clear violation of secure coding practices that should be addressed through comprehensive application security testing and input validation mechanisms. Organizations should conduct thorough security assessments of their monitoring infrastructure and implement proper access controls to limit the potential impact of such vulnerabilities, as the ATT&CK framework categorizes this type of vulnerability under web application attacks that can lead to privilege escalation and data exfiltration.