CVE-2010-3694 in Application Framework
Summary
by MITRE
Cross-site request forgery (CSRF) vulnerability in the Horde Application Framework before 3.3.9 allows remote attackers to hijack the authentication of unspecified victims for requests to a preference form.
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Analysis
by VulDB Data Team • 09/28/2021
The CVE-2010-3694 vulnerability represents a critical cross-site request forgery flaw within the Horde Application Framework, a widely-used open-source web application framework that powers numerous email and collaboration systems. This vulnerability existed in versions prior to 3.3.9 and enabled remote attackers to manipulate authenticated sessions by tricking users into executing unintended actions against their own accounts. The flaw specifically targeted the preference form functionality, which is a core component for user configuration management within the framework. Attackers could craft malicious web pages or links that would automatically submit requests to the target application's preference handling endpoints, effectively hijacking user sessions without their knowledge or consent.
The technical mechanism behind this vulnerability stems from the framework's insufficient validation of request origins and lack of proper anti-CSRF token implementation. When users accessed the preference form, the application failed to adequately verify that requests originated from legitimate sources within the same domain. This absence of proper origin checking and token-based authentication mechanisms created an exploitable condition where attackers could construct malicious requests that would be automatically executed by authenticated users' browsers. The vulnerability exploited the fundamental principle that web applications should verify the authenticity of requests to prevent unauthorized actions from being performed on behalf of legitimate users. This flaw aligns with CWE-352, which specifically addresses Cross-Site Request Forgery vulnerabilities in web applications.
The operational impact of this vulnerability extends beyond simple preference manipulation, as it could potentially allow attackers to modify user settings, access sensitive configuration data, or even facilitate further attacks by altering authentication-related preferences. Attackers could exploit this vulnerability to change user passwords, modify email forwarding settings, adjust security preferences, or manipulate other account-specific configurations that could compromise user privacy and system integrity. The remote nature of the attack means that victims could be compromised simply by visiting malicious websites or clicking on compromised links, making the vulnerability particularly dangerous in environments where users frequently access untrusted web content. This type of vulnerability directly maps to ATT&CK technique T1566.002, which describes the use of malicious web content to perform credential theft or session hijacking activities.
Mitigation strategies for CVE-2010-3694 require immediate implementation of proper anti-CSRF measures within the affected applications. Organizations should upgrade to Horde Application Framework version 3.3.9 or later, which includes the necessary security patches to address the vulnerability. Additionally, developers should implement robust token-based validation mechanisms for all state-changing operations within web applications, ensuring that each request contains a unique, unpredictable token that can be verified against the user's session. The implementation should follow established security best practices such as using anti-CSRF tokens for all forms and requests that modify user data or system settings. Security teams should also consider implementing additional monitoring and detection capabilities to identify suspicious patterns of preference form access that might indicate CSRF attack attempts. Regular security assessments and penetration testing should be conducted to verify that proper CSRF protection mechanisms are in place across all web applications utilizing the Horde framework.