CVE-2012-0714 in Tivoli Service Request Manager
Summary
by MITRE
Cross-site request forgery (CSRF) vulnerability in IBM Maximo Asset Management 6.2 through 7.5, as used in SmartCloud Control Desk, Tivoli Asset Management for IT, Tivoli Service Request Manager, Maximo Service Desk, and Change and Configuration Management Database (CCMDB), allows remote attackers to hijack the authentication of unspecified victims via unknown vectors.
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Analysis
by VulDB Data Team • 05/07/2017
The CVE-2012-0714 vulnerability represents a critical cross-site request forgery flaw affecting multiple IBM Maximo products including Asset Management 6.2 through 7.5 and related systems such as SmartCloud Control Desk and Tivoli Asset Management for IT. This vulnerability operates at the application layer and specifically targets the authentication mechanisms within these enterprise asset management platforms. The flaw allows remote attackers to manipulate authenticated sessions by tricking users into executing unintended actions without their knowledge, effectively bypassing the authentication controls that should protect system access. The vulnerability's impact extends across multiple IBM product lines, indicating a widespread issue that affects various enterprise management solutions.
The technical nature of this CSRF vulnerability stems from the absence of proper anti-CSRF protections within the affected IBM Maximo applications. Attackers can exploit this weakness by crafting malicious web pages or links that, when visited by authenticated users, automatically submit requests to the vulnerable system. The attack vectors remain unspecified in the CVE description, suggesting that multiple methods could be employed to trigger the vulnerability. This lack of specificity indicates that the flaw exists in core authentication handling code rather than in specific API endpoints or functions, making it particularly dangerous as it could potentially affect numerous operational workflows within the enterprise environment. The vulnerability operates under CWE-352, which specifically addresses Cross-Site Request Forgery weaknesses in web applications.
The operational impact of this vulnerability is severe for organizations relying on IBM Maximo systems for critical asset management and service desk operations. Successful exploitation could allow attackers to perform unauthorized actions such as creating new user accounts, modifying existing records, changing system configurations, or accessing sensitive data without proper authorization. The hijacking of authentication sessions means that attackers could potentially gain administrative privileges or access to confidential business information, leading to significant operational disruption and potential financial losses. Organizations using these systems for managing critical infrastructure assets, service requests, or change management processes face particular risk as these operations could be compromised through this vulnerability.
Mitigation strategies for CVE-2012-0714 should focus on implementing robust anti-CSRF protections within the affected IBM Maximo applications. Organizations should ensure that all authentication requests include unique, unpredictable tokens that validate the legitimacy of user sessions. The recommended approach involves deploying proper CSRF token validation mechanisms, implementing SameSite cookie attributes, and ensuring that all state-changing operations require explicit user confirmation. Security patches from IBM should be applied immediately to address the vulnerability, and organizations should conduct thorough security assessments of their Maximo deployments to identify any additional related weaknesses. Network-level protections such as web application firewalls can provide additional defense-in-depth, though the primary solution must be the implementation of proper anti-CSRF controls within the application itself. This vulnerability aligns with ATT&CK technique T1566 which covers social engineering attacks through forged web requests, emphasizing the need for comprehensive application-level protections.