CVE-2012-1121 in MantisBT
Summary
by MITRE
MantisBT before 1.2.9 does not properly check permissions, which allows remote authenticated users with manager privileges to (1) modify or (2) delete global categories.
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Analysis
by VulDB Data Team • 12/05/2021
The vulnerability identified as CVE-2012-1121 affects MantisBT versions prior to 1.2.9, representing a critical permission bypass flaw within the bug tracking system's access control mechanisms. This issue specifically targets authenticated users who possess manager privileges, creating a significant security risk that undermines the integrity of the system's administrative controls.
The technical flaw manifests in the insufficient validation of user permissions within the MantisBT application's category management functionality. When authenticated users with manager roles attempt to interact with global categories, the system fails to properly verify whether these users possess the necessary authorization levels to perform modification or deletion operations. This weakness allows privileged attackers to bypass intended access controls and execute unauthorized actions against system-wide categories that should be protected from modification by less privileged users.
From an operational perspective, this vulnerability creates substantial risks for organizations relying on MantisBT for project management and bug tracking. The ability to modify or delete global categories can lead to data corruption, loss of important project metadata, and disruption of workflow processes. Attackers with manager privileges can potentially compromise the integrity of project categorization systems, making it difficult to track issues effectively and maintain proper organizational structure within the bug tracking environment.
The impact extends beyond immediate data manipulation capabilities as it represents a fundamental breakdown in the principle of least privilege enforcement. This flaw enables attackers to escalate their influence within the system by altering core organizational structures that govern how issues are classified and managed. Such unauthorized changes can have cascading effects on reporting mechanisms, automated workflows, and overall system reliability.
Organizations should implement immediate mitigations including upgrading to MantisBT version 1.2.9 or later, which contains the necessary permission checking fixes. Additionally, administrators should conduct thorough access control reviews to ensure that only trusted personnel maintain manager privileges. Network segmentation and monitoring of administrative activities can provide additional layers of protection against exploitation attempts. This vulnerability aligns with CWE-284, which addresses improper access control, and represents a clear violation of the ATT&CK technique T1078 for Valid Accounts and T1484 for Domain Policy Modification, as it enables unauthorized privilege escalation within the application environment.