CVE-2010-4710 in YUI
Summary
by MITRE
Cross-site scripting (XSS) vulnerability in the addItem method in the Menu widget in YUI before 2.9.0 allows remote attackers to inject arbitrary web script or HTML via a field that is added to a menu, related to documentation that specifies this field as a text field rather than an HTML field, a similar issue to CVE-2010-4569 and CVE-2010-4570.
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Analysis
by VulDB Data Team • 10/13/2021
The CVE-2010-4710 vulnerability represents a critical cross-site scripting flaw within the YUI (Yahoo User Interface) library's Menu widget component. This vulnerability specifically affects versions prior to 2.9.0 and resides in the addItem method where user-supplied data is processed without adequate sanitization. The flaw stems from a documentation misalignment where a particular field is designated as a text field rather than an HTML field, creating a security gap that attackers can exploit to inject malicious scripts. The vulnerability operates under the CWE-79 principle of Cross-Site Scripting, which is classified as a fundamental web application security weakness that allows attackers to execute scripts in the context of other users' browsers.
The technical implementation of this vulnerability occurs when the Menu widget processes user input through the addItem method, where the field handling logic fails to properly escape or sanitize HTML characters in the data being added to the menu structure. When attackers provide malicious input containing script tags or other HTML elements, these are rendered directly into the page without proper context encoding, enabling the execution of arbitrary JavaScript code within the victim's browser session. This flaw is particularly dangerous because it leverages the legitimate functionality of the menu component to deliver malicious payloads, making detection more challenging as the malicious code appears to originate from a trusted source within the application interface.
The operational impact of CVE-2010-4710 extends beyond simple script injection, potentially enabling attackers to perform session hijacking, defacement of web applications, or redirection to malicious sites. The vulnerability's similarity to CVE-2010-4569 and CVE-2010-4570 indicates a broader pattern of insecure input handling within the YUI library's widget framework, suggesting that multiple components may share similar vulnerabilities. Attackers can exploit this weakness to steal cookies, modify application behavior, or conduct more sophisticated attacks such as credential theft through the browser's same-origin policy bypass. The attack vector requires minimal privileges as it operates over standard web traffic, making it particularly attractive to threat actors seeking to compromise web applications built on the YUI framework.
Mitigation strategies for this vulnerability require immediate patching of affected YUI library versions to 2.9.0 or later, where the input sanitization has been properly implemented. Organizations should also implement comprehensive input validation and output encoding at multiple layers of their web applications, particularly for any user-generated content that gets rendered in HTML contexts. The ATT&CK framework categorizes this vulnerability under T1059.007 for Command and Scripting Interpreter: JavaScript, and T1566.002 for Phishing: Spearphishing Attachment, as attackers may leverage this flaw to deliver malicious JavaScript payloads through compromised web applications. Additional defensive measures include implementing Content Security Policy headers, regular security code reviews, and automated vulnerability scanning to identify similar input handling issues across the application stack, ensuring that all user-supplied data is properly escaped before being rendered in HTML contexts.