CVE-2010-5338 in Webclient
Summary
by MITRE
IceWarp Webclient before 10.2.1 has XSS via an HTTP POST request: webmail/basic/ with the parameter _dlg[captcha][action] is non-persistent in 10.1.3 and 10.2.0.
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Analysis
by VulDB Data Team • 10/01/2020
The vulnerability identified as CVE-2010-5338 affects the IceWarp Webclient email system prior to version 10.2.1, specifically targeting the webmail/basic/ endpoint where user input is improperly validated and processed. This represents a classic cross-site scripting vulnerability that allows attackers to inject malicious scripts into web pages viewed by other users. The vulnerability manifests through an HTTP POST request containing the parameter _dlg[captcha][action] which is not adequately sanitized or escaped before being rendered in the web interface. This flaw exists within the webmail application's handling of captcha-related parameters, making it particularly concerning as captcha mechanisms are typically designed to prevent automated abuse and ensure legitimate user interactions.
The technical implementation of this vulnerability stems from insufficient input validation and output encoding within the IceWarp Webclient's processing pipeline. When the application receives a POST request with the specified parameter, it fails to properly sanitize the input before incorporating it into dynamically generated HTML content. This lack of proper sanitization creates an opening for attackers to inject malicious JavaScript code that executes in the context of other users' browsers. The vulnerability is classified as non-persistent in versions 10.1.3 and 10.2.0, indicating that the malicious payload is not stored on the server but rather executed during the request processing phase. This characteristic makes the attack more difficult to detect and analyze, as the malicious code is only active during the specific request transmission and execution.
From an operational perspective, this vulnerability poses significant risks to organizations using IceWarp Webclient as their primary email solution. Attackers could exploit this weakness to steal session cookies, redirect users to malicious websites, or execute arbitrary commands on behalf of authenticated users. The impact extends beyond simple script injection as it could potentially enable privilege escalation attacks or facilitate further exploitation of the webmail system. The vulnerability affects the core webmail functionality and could compromise sensitive email communications, user credentials, and organizational data. According to CWE classification, this vulnerability maps to CWE-79 which represents Cross-site Scripting, specifically focusing on the failure to sanitize user input before incorporating it into web page content. The attack vector aligns with ATT&CK technique T1566.001 which covers spearphishing through social media, as attackers could leverage this vulnerability to create convincing phishing campaigns that appear legitimate within the email interface.
The mitigation strategy for CVE-2010-5338 requires immediate deployment of the vendor-provided patch for IceWarp Webclient version 10.2.1 or later, which addresses the input validation and output encoding issues. Organizations should implement comprehensive input sanitization measures that properly escape all user-supplied data before rendering it in HTML contexts. Network administrators should consider implementing web application firewalls to detect and block suspicious POST requests containing potentially malicious payloads. Additionally, security teams should conduct thorough vulnerability assessments of other web applications within the organization to identify similar input validation weaknesses. Regular security testing including dynamic application security testing and manual penetration testing should be performed to ensure that similar vulnerabilities are not present in other components of the email infrastructure. The patch implementation should be followed by comprehensive monitoring to detect any attempts to exploit the vulnerability during the transition period.