CVE-2010-2080 in OTRS
Summary
by MITRE
Multiple cross-site scripting (XSS) vulnerabilities in Open Ticket Request System (OTRS) 2.3.x before 2.3.6 and 2.4.x before 2.4.8 allow remote authenticated users to inject arbitrary web script or HTML via unspecified vectors.
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Analysis
by VulDB Data Team • 09/25/2021
The CVE-2010-2080 vulnerability represents a critical cross-site scripting flaw discovered in the Open Ticket Request System OTRS platform, affecting versions 2.3.x prior to 2.3.6 and 2.4.x prior to 2.4.8. This vulnerability resides within the web application's input validation mechanisms, specifically in how it processes user-supplied data within the ticketing system interface. The flaw allows authenticated attackers who already possess valid credentials to execute malicious scripts against other users who interact with the compromised system. This represents a significant security risk as it can be exploited to perform actions on behalf of legitimate users, potentially leading to data theft, session hijacking, or further system compromise. The vulnerability falls under the CWE-79 category of Cross-Site Scripting, which is classified as a critical weakness in web application security that enables attackers to inject malicious code into web pages viewed by other users.
The technical exploitation of this vulnerability occurs through unspecified input vectors within the OTRS application's user interface components. Attackers with valid authentication credentials can leverage this flaw by injecting malicious JavaScript code or HTML elements into various fields of the ticketing system. These inputs are not properly sanitized or escaped before being rendered in web pages, creating opportunities for script execution in the context of other users' browsers. The authenticated nature of the vulnerability means that attackers must first obtain legitimate user credentials, but once achieved, they can manipulate the system to execute arbitrary code against other users. This attack vector aligns with ATT&CK technique T1566.001 for credential harvesting and subsequent exploitation through web application vulnerabilities. The impact is particularly concerning in enterprise environments where OTRS is used for customer support and internal ticket management, as it could enable attackers to access sensitive data, manipulate support tickets, or redirect users to malicious sites.
The operational impact of CVE-2010-2080 extends beyond simple script injection, as it can facilitate more sophisticated attacks within the compromised environment. An attacker could craft malicious payloads that steal session cookies, redirect users to phishing sites, or even execute commands on the victim's browser through advanced XSS techniques such as DOM-based XSS or reflected XSS. The vulnerability's presence in a ticketing system creates additional risks since these systems often contain sensitive business data, customer information, and internal communications. Organizations using OTRS may experience unauthorized access to support tickets, modification of critical service requests, or data exfiltration through the exploitation of this vulnerability. The authenticated nature of the attack means that attackers can potentially escalate privileges or access restricted functionality within the system, making this vulnerability particularly dangerous in environments with varying user roles and permissions. According to industry best practices for secure web application development, this vulnerability demonstrates the critical importance of input validation and output encoding in preventing XSS attacks. The flaw also highlights the necessity of implementing proper security testing procedures including dynamic application security testing and manual penetration testing to identify such vulnerabilities before they can be exploited in production environments.
Organizations affected by this vulnerability should immediately implement the vendor-provided patches for OTRS versions 2.3.6 and 2.4.8, which contain the necessary fixes for the XSS vulnerabilities. Additionally, security teams should conduct comprehensive audits of their OTRS installations to identify any potential exploitation attempts and review access controls to ensure that only authorized personnel have access to the system. Implementing Content Security Policy headers, input validation controls, and regular security monitoring can provide additional defense-in-depth measures. The vulnerability also underscores the importance of maintaining up-to-date security patches and following secure coding practices such as those outlined in OWASP's Top Ten and the CWE classification system. Organizations should consider implementing web application firewalls and intrusion detection systems to monitor for potential exploitation attempts of similar vulnerabilities. Regular security training for administrators and users can help prevent credential compromise and reduce the attack surface for such authenticated vulnerabilities. The remediation process should include thorough testing of patches in staging environments before deployment to production systems to ensure that the fixes do not introduce any regressions or compatibility issues within the ticketing infrastructure.