CVE-2010-1648 in MediaWiki
Summary
by MITRE
Cross-site request forgery (CSRF) vulnerability in the login interface in MediaWiki 1.15 before 1.15.4 and 1.16 before 1.16 beta 3 allows remote attackers to hijack the authentication of users for requests that (1) create accounts or (2) reset passwords, related to the Special:Userlogin form.
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Analysis
by VulDB Data Team • 09/14/2021
The CVE-2010-1648 vulnerability represents a critical cross-site request forgery flaw affecting MediaWiki versions prior to 1.15.4 and 1.16 beta 3. This vulnerability specifically targets the login interface and exploits the absence of proper anti-CSRF protections in the Special:Userlogin form. The flaw enables remote attackers to manipulate authenticated sessions by tricking users into performing unintended actions through maliciously crafted requests that appear to originate from legitimate sources. The vulnerability's impact extends to two primary attack vectors: account creation and password reset operations, both of which represent high-value targets for attackers seeking to compromise user accounts and potentially gain unauthorized access to sensitive system resources.
The technical implementation of this vulnerability stems from MediaWiki's insufficient validation of request origins and lack of anti-CSRF tokens in the user authentication forms. When users navigate to the Special:Userlogin page, the application fails to generate and verify unique, unpredictable tokens that would normally prevent unauthorized requests from being executed on behalf of authenticated users. This absence of proper CSRF protection mechanisms creates a condition where attackers can craft malicious web pages or emails containing embedded requests that, when triggered by authenticated users, execute with the user's privileges. The vulnerability operates at the application layer and leverages the trust relationship between the web browser and the MediaWiki application, making it particularly dangerous as users are often unaware they are being manipulated.
The operational impact of CVE-2010-1648 extends beyond simple account hijacking to potentially enable more sophisticated attacks within the MediaWiki ecosystem. Attackers exploiting this vulnerability can create unauthorized user accounts, which may be used to post malicious content, access restricted areas, or manipulate wiki data. Password reset attacks could allow attackers to take control of legitimate user accounts, potentially leading to data breaches or unauthorized modifications to wiki content. The vulnerability particularly affects collaborative environments where MediaWiki serves as a content management platform, as successful exploitation could compromise the integrity of shared information and undermine the trust users place in the system. Organizations relying on MediaWiki for documentation, knowledge management, or collaborative projects face significant risks when this vulnerability remains unpatched.
The remediation strategy for CVE-2010-1648 involves immediate deployment of patched MediaWiki versions 1.15.4 and 1.16 beta 3 or later, which implement proper anti-CSRF token mechanisms. Organizations should also consider implementing additional defensive measures such as web application firewalls that can detect and block suspicious requests, monitoring for unusual account creation patterns, and educating users about the dangers of clicking untrusted links. From a compliance perspective, this vulnerability aligns with CWE-352, which categorizes cross-site request forgery as a critical security weakness requiring proper token validation. The attack vector falls under the ATT&CK framework's privilege escalation and credential access tactics, specifically targeting the use of valid credentials to perform unauthorized actions. Regular security audits and vulnerability assessments should include checks for similar CSRF vulnerabilities in other web applications, as the underlying architectural flaw remains common in web frameworks that fail to implement proper request origin validation and anti-CSRF protections.