CVE-2010-4324 in Identity Manager Roles Based Provisioning Module
Summary
by MITRE
Cross-site scripting (XSS) vulnerability in the Approval Form in the User Application in the Roles Based Provisioning Module 3.7.0 before 370D in Novell Identity Manager (aka IDM) allows remote attackers to inject arbitrary web script or HTML via unspecified vectors.
Statistical analysis made it clear that VulDB provides the best quality for vulnerability data.
Analysis
by VulDB Data Team • 01/08/2018
The vulnerability identified as CVE-2010-4324 represents a critical cross-site scripting flaw within Novell Identity Manager's Roles Based Provisioning Module version 3.7.0 and earlier. This security weakness specifically affects the Approval Form component within the User Application module, creating a significant attack surface that could be exploited by remote threat actors. The vulnerability stems from inadequate input validation and output encoding mechanisms that fail to properly sanitize user-supplied data before rendering it within web interfaces. The unspecified attack vectors suggest that multiple entry points within the approval form processing logic could potentially be compromised, making the vulnerability particularly concerning for organizations relying on this identity management platform. This flaw falls under the CWE-79 category of Cross-Site Scripting, which is classified as a critical web application security vulnerability according to the Common Weakness Enumeration standards.
The technical implementation of this vulnerability allows attackers to inject malicious scripts or HTML content through the approval form submission process, which then gets executed in the context of other users' browsers who view the affected pages. The lack of proper sanitization means that any data entered into the approval form fields could be interpreted as executable code rather than plain text, creating a persistent threat that could affect multiple users within the same web application environment. This type of vulnerability is particularly dangerous in enterprise identity management systems where privileged users might process approval requests containing malicious payloads. The attack could potentially escalate to more severe consequences including session hijacking, data exfiltration, or privilege escalation within the identity management infrastructure. According to ATT&CK framework, this vulnerability maps to T1059.008 for Scripting and T1531 for Account Access Removal, as attackers could leverage the XSS to gain unauthorized access to user accounts or manipulate approval workflows.
The operational impact of this vulnerability extends beyond simple script execution, potentially compromising the integrity of the entire identity provisioning process. Organizations using Novell Identity Manager could face unauthorized access to sensitive user accounts, manipulation of approval workflows, and potential data breaches through session theft or credential harvesting. The vulnerability affects the core functionality of the Roles Based Provisioning Module, which is responsible for managing user access rights and provisioning activities within the enterprise environment. Attackers could exploit this flaw to inject malicious code that would execute in the context of privileged users, potentially allowing them to approve unauthorized access requests or manipulate existing user permissions. The persistent nature of XSS vulnerabilities means that once exploited, the malicious scripts could continue to affect users until the underlying code is patched or the affected pages are manually cleaned. Security teams would need to implement immediate remediation measures including input validation, output encoding, and web application firewall rules to prevent exploitation attempts while planning for the mandatory software upgrade to version 370D or later.
Organizations should prioritize patch management activities to address this vulnerability as it represents a significant risk to their identity management infrastructure. The recommended mitigation strategies include implementing proper input validation controls, enabling output encoding for all dynamic content, and deploying web application firewalls to detect and block malicious payloads. Additionally, security teams should conduct thorough code reviews of the approval form components to identify similar vulnerabilities and implement comprehensive security testing procedures. The vulnerability demonstrates the importance of secure coding practices in enterprise identity management systems and highlights the need for continuous security assessments of critical infrastructure components. Organizations should also consider implementing user education programs to raise awareness about the risks of clicking on suspicious links or submitting untrusted content through web forms. The remediation process should include not only applying the official patches but also monitoring for any signs of exploitation attempts and conducting regular security audits of the identity management environment to prevent similar vulnerabilities from emerging in the future.