CVE-2011-4329 in Dolibarr
Summary
by MITRE
Multiple cross-site scripting (XSS) vulnerabilities in Dolibarr 3.1.0 allow remote attackers to inject arbitrary web script or HTML via (1) the username parameter in a setup action to admin/company.php, or the PATH_INFO to (2) admin/security_other.php, (3) admin/events.php, or (4) admin/user.php.
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Analysis
by VulDB Data Team • 11/26/2021
The vulnerability identified as CVE-2011-4329 represents a critical cross-site scripting flaw affecting Dolibarr version 3.1.0, a widely used open-source ERP and CRM system. This vulnerability stems from inadequate input validation and output sanitization mechanisms within the application's administrative interfaces. The flaw permits remote attackers to execute malicious scripts in the context of authenticated users' browsers, potentially leading to unauthorized access to sensitive data, session hijacking, or complete system compromise. The vulnerability specifically targets four distinct administrative endpoints within the Dolibarr platform, each serving different administrative functions including company setup, security configuration, event management, and user administration.
The technical exploitation of this vulnerability occurs through multiple attack vectors that leverage the application's handling of user-supplied input. Attackers can inject malicious scripts via the username parameter during setup operations in admin/company.php, or through PATH_INFO parameters in admin/security_other.php, admin/events.php, and admin/user.php. These vectors demonstrate a fundamental weakness in the application's input sanitization process, where user-provided data is not properly escaped or validated before being rendered in web responses. The vulnerability falls under CWE-79 which specifically addresses Cross-Site Scripting flaws, and aligns with ATT&CK technique T1566.001 for initial access through malicious web content. The lack of proper contextual output encoding means that any data submitted through these parameters can be executed as client-side scripts, making the attack surface particularly broad across the administrative functionality.
The operational impact of CVE-2011-4329 extends beyond simple script execution, as it can enable sophisticated attack chains leading to complete system compromise. An attacker who successfully exploits this vulnerability can potentially access sensitive administrative functions, modify user permissions, steal session cookies, or redirect users to malicious sites. The vulnerability is particularly dangerous because it affects administrative interfaces, meaning successful exploitation could lead to full system control. Organizations using Dolibarr 3.1.0 are at risk of unauthorized data access, data manipulation, and potential lateral movement within their network infrastructure. The vulnerability's persistence across multiple administrative endpoints indicates a systemic flaw in the application's security architecture, suggesting that proper input validation and output encoding practices were not consistently implemented throughout the codebase.
Mitigation strategies for this vulnerability require immediate action to address the root cause through proper input validation and output encoding implementations. Organizations should upgrade to a patched version of Dolibarr, as the vendor would have released security updates addressing these specific XSS vulnerabilities. The remediation process should include implementing proper HTML escaping for all user-supplied input, implementing Content Security Policy headers to prevent script execution, and conducting comprehensive input validation across all administrative interfaces. Additionally, network segmentation and monitoring solutions should be employed to detect suspicious activities related to these specific attack vectors. Security teams should also implement regular vulnerability scanning and penetration testing to identify similar weaknesses in other applications, as this vulnerability demonstrates the importance of consistent security practices across all application components. The ATT&CK framework suggests implementing defensive measures such as web application firewalls and input validation controls to prevent exploitation of similar vulnerabilities.