CVE-2011-5149 in SpamTitan
Summary
by MITRE
Multiple cross-site scripting (XSS) vulnerabilities in SpamTitan 5.08 and earlier allow remote attackers to inject arbitrary web script or HTML via the (1) testaddr or (2) testpass parameter to auth-settings.php; (3) hostname, (4) domainname, or (5) mailserver parameter to setup-relay.php; or (6) subnetmask or (7) defaultroute parameter to setup-network.php.
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Analysis
by VulDB Data Team • 01/18/2025
The CVE-2011-5149 vulnerability represents a critical cross-site scripting flaw affecting SpamTitan versions 5.08 and earlier, demonstrating a fundamental weakness in input validation and output sanitization within web-based email security applications. This vulnerability resides in the authentication and network configuration interfaces of SpamTitan, exposing organizations to potential exploitation by remote attackers who can manipulate specific parameters through crafted HTTP requests. The vulnerability affects three distinct PHP scripts that handle critical system configuration operations, creating multiple attack vectors that collectively undermine the application's security posture and potentially compromise the entire email infrastructure.
The technical implementation of this vulnerability stems from inadequate sanitization of user-supplied input parameters across multiple configuration pages, specifically targeting parameters in auth-settings.php, setup-relay.php, and setup-network.php. Attackers can exploit these flaws by injecting malicious script code through the testaddr and testpass parameters in auth-settings.php, which are processed without proper validation or encoding before being rendered in web responses. Similarly, the hostname, domainname, mailserver parameters in setup-relay.php, and subnetmask, defaultroute parameters in setup-network.php all accept unfiltered input that can be manipulated to execute malicious JavaScript in the context of authenticated users' browsers. This vulnerability directly maps to CWE-79 - Cross-site Scripting, which categorizes the flaw as a failure to sanitize or encode user-provided data before incorporating it into dynamically generated web content.
The operational impact of CVE-2011-5149 extends beyond simple script injection, as it creates opportunities for attackers to escalate privileges and gain unauthorized access to email systems. When authenticated users interact with compromised configuration pages, the injected scripts can execute with the privileges of the logged-in user, potentially enabling session hijacking, data exfiltration, or further compromise of the email infrastructure. The vulnerability's presence in network configuration interfaces is particularly concerning as it could allow attackers to manipulate routing parameters and potentially redirect email traffic through malicious servers. According to ATT&CK framework, this vulnerability aligns with T1566 - Phishing and T1059 - Command and Scripting Interpreter, as it enables initial access through malicious web content and subsequent execution of arbitrary code in user browsers. The attack surface is further expanded by the fact that these configuration pages typically require administrative privileges, meaning successful exploitation could provide attackers with elevated system access.
Organizations affected by CVE-2011-5149 should immediately implement multiple layers of mitigation strategies to protect their email infrastructure. The primary remediation involves upgrading to SpamTitan versions 5.10 or later, where input validation and output encoding have been properly implemented to prevent XSS injection. Additionally, implementing proper input sanitization at the application level, including HTML encoding of all user-supplied parameters before rendering, should be enforced across all configuration interfaces. Network-level protections such as web application firewalls can provide additional defense-in-depth, though they should not replace proper application-level fixes. Security teams should also conduct thorough vulnerability assessments of all email security appliances and web applications to identify similar input validation weaknesses, as this vulnerability pattern is common in legacy applications where security was not adequately considered during initial development phases. The remediation process should include comprehensive testing to ensure that all parameters are properly sanitized and that no similar vulnerabilities exist in other configuration interfaces or administrative functions of the SpamTitan application.