CVE-2011-3598 in phpPgAdmin
Summary
by MITRE
Multiple cross-site scripting (XSS) vulnerabilities in phpPgAdmin before 5.0.3 allow remote attackers to inject arbitrary web script or HTML via (1) a web page title, related to classes/Misc.php; or the (2) return_url or (3) return_desc parameter to display.php.
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Analysis
by VulDB Data Team • 11/23/2021
The vulnerability identified as CVE-2011-3598 represents a critical cross-site scripting flaw affecting phpPgAdmin versions prior to 5.0.3. This vulnerability resides in the web application's handling of user-supplied input within specific parameters, creating opportunities for remote attackers to execute malicious scripts in the context of victims' browsers. The vulnerability is categorized under CWE-79, which specifically addresses Cross-Site Scripting flaws, making it a fundamental web application security weakness that has been consistently documented in industry security frameworks.
The technical implementation of this vulnerability occurs through three distinct attack vectors within the phpPgAdmin application. The first vector involves the manipulation of a web page title parameter within the classes/Misc.php file, while the second and third vectors target the return_url and return_desc parameters in the display.php script. These parameters fail to properly sanitize or escape user input before rendering it in web pages, allowing attackers to inject malicious HTML or JavaScript code. The vulnerability stems from inadequate input validation and output encoding practices, where the application directly incorporates user-supplied data into its response without proper security measures.
The operational impact of this vulnerability is significant as it enables remote code execution within the context of authenticated users' browsers. An attacker could craft malicious payloads that would execute when victims navigate to affected pages, potentially leading to session hijacking, credential theft, or redirection to malicious sites. The vulnerability affects the core functionality of phpPgAdmin, which is a web-based administration tool for PostgreSQL databases, making it particularly dangerous in environments where database administrators interact with the application regularly. The attack requires no special privileges beyond access to the vulnerable application, making it an attractive target for threat actors.
Mitigation strategies for CVE-2011-3598 should focus on immediate patching of the affected phpPgAdmin versions to 5.0.3 or later, which contain the necessary fixes for input sanitization. Organizations should implement comprehensive input validation and output encoding mechanisms across all user-supplied parameters, particularly those used in page titles and URL redirections. The implementation of Content Security Policy headers can provide additional defense-in-depth measures against XSS attacks. Security practices should align with ATT&CK framework's T1059.008 technique for client-side exploitation, emphasizing the importance of proper input sanitization and output encoding. Additionally, regular security assessments and code reviews should be conducted to identify similar vulnerabilities in other web applications within the organization's infrastructure.