CVE-2010-4411 in CGI.pm
Summary
by MITRE
Unspecified vulnerability in CGI.pm 3.50 and earlier allows remote attackers to inject arbitrary HTTP headers and conduct HTTP response splitting attacks via unknown vectors. NOTE: this issue exists because of an incomplete fix for CVE-2010-2761.
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Analysis
by VulDB Data Team • 10/06/2021
The vulnerability described in CVE-2010-4411 represents a critical security flaw in the CGI.pm library version 3.50 and earlier, which serves as a fundamental component for web application development in perl environments. This issue specifically enables remote attackers to manipulate HTTP headers through unspecified vectors, creating a pathway for HTTP response splitting attacks that can have severe implications for web application security and user data integrity. The vulnerability's existence stems from an incomplete remediation of a previous security issue, CVE-2010-2761, indicating a pattern of security gaps in the library's handling of HTTP header validation and sanitization processes.
The technical implementation of this vulnerability occurs within the CGI.pm library's processing of HTTP headers, where insufficient input validation allows malicious actors to inject crafted header values that can be interpreted by web servers and browsers as legitimate HTTP response components. When attackers successfully exploit this flaw, they can manipulate the HTTP response by injecting additional headers or modifying existing ones, potentially leading to various attack vectors including cross-site scripting, session hijacking, and cache poisoning. The incomplete fix for CVE-2010-2761 suggests that while some header validation was implemented, critical edge cases or injection points were overlooked, leaving the system vulnerable to sophisticated header manipulation attacks.
The operational impact of this vulnerability extends beyond simple header injection, as HTTP response splitting attacks can compromise the entire web application security model by allowing attackers to inject malicious content into HTTP responses that are subsequently cached or served to other users. This type of vulnerability directly violates the principle of least privilege and can enable attackers to bypass security controls, manipulate user sessions, and potentially redirect users to malicious websites. The attack surface is particularly concerning in environments where CGI.pm is used for form processing, authentication handling, or any scenario where user input is processed and returned in HTTP responses, as these applications become susceptible to manipulation through the injected headers.
Organizations utilizing affected versions of CGI.pm should prioritize immediate remediation through patching or upgrading to versions that properly address the header injection vulnerability. The mitigation strategy should include implementing comprehensive input validation at multiple layers of the application stack, including server-side validation of HTTP headers and sanitization of user-supplied data before processing. Additionally, organizations should consider implementing HTTP header security controls such as Content Security Policy headers and strict header validation mechanisms to prevent exploitation of similar vulnerabilities in other components. This vulnerability aligns with CWE-113, which specifically addresses improper neutralization of characters or elements within HTTP headers, and represents a significant concern within the ATT&CK framework under the technique of HTTP Response Splitting, which can lead to various downstream security compromises including credential theft and session manipulation. The remediation process must also include thorough testing of header handling mechanisms and validation of all HTTP response components to ensure that the incomplete fix for CVE-2010-2761 has been properly addressed and that no similar vulnerabilities exist in the application's header processing logic.