CVE-2010-3913 in Active! mail
Summary
by MITRE
CRLF injection vulnerability in TransWARE Active! mail 6 build 6.40.010047750 and earlier allows remote attackers to inject arbitrary HTTP headers and conduct HTTP response splitting attacks via unspecified vectors.
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Analysis
by VulDB Data Team • 01/06/2018
The CVE-2010-3913 vulnerability represents a critical CRLF injection flaw within TransWARE Active! mail version 6 build 6.40.010047750 and earlier releases. This vulnerability resides in the email client's handling of user input within HTTP header fields, creating a pathway for malicious actors to manipulate HTTP responses through carefully crafted input sequences. The issue stems from insufficient validation and sanitization of input data that flows into HTTP header construction processes, allowing attackers to inject carriage return line feed sequences that can disrupt normal HTTP communication patterns.
The technical exploitation of this vulnerability occurs when an attacker crafts input containing CRLF sequences that are subsequently processed by the email client's HTTP handling components. These sequences enable attackers to inject additional HTTP headers into responses, effectively allowing them to manipulate the HTTP response structure. The vulnerability's impact extends beyond simple header injection, as it enables HTTP response splitting attacks where attackers can inject malicious content into HTTP responses, potentially leading to cross-site scripting, session hijacking, or cache poisoning scenarios. This flaw operates at the application layer and can be exploited through various attack vectors including email attachments, HTML content, or crafted email headers that are processed by the vulnerable client.
The operational impact of CVE-2010-3913 is significant for organizations relying on TransWARE Active! mail for email processing and web-based communications. Attackers can leverage this vulnerability to redirect users to malicious websites, inject malicious JavaScript into web pages, or manipulate browser behavior through response splitting techniques. The vulnerability particularly affects environments where the email client processes untrusted web content or where HTTP responses are used for web application functionality. Organizations may experience unauthorized access to sensitive data, session manipulation, or complete compromise of web application security when this vulnerability is exploited in conjunction with other attack vectors.
Mitigation strategies for this vulnerability should focus on immediate patching of affected TransWARE Active! mail versions to the latest available releases that address the CRLF injection flaw. Network administrators should implement strict input validation mechanisms at all points where user-supplied data enters HTTP processing pipelines, particularly within email client applications. The implementation of proper HTTP header sanitization and validation controls can help prevent the injection of malicious CRLF sequences. Organizations should also consider deploying web application firewalls and HTTP traffic inspection tools to detect and block suspicious header injection attempts. According to CWE standards, this vulnerability maps to CWE-110, which specifically addresses CRLF injection in HTTP headers, and aligns with ATT&CK techniques related to HTTP response manipulation and session hijacking. Regular security assessments and input validation reviews should be conducted to ensure that similar vulnerabilities are not present in other components of the email processing infrastructure.