CVE-2012-1789 in Kongreg8
Summary
by MITRE
Multiple cross-site scripting (XSS) vulnerabilities in Kongreg8 1.7.3 allow remote attackers to inject arbitrary web script or HTML via the (1) surname or (2) firstname parameters to modules/members/addmember.php; or (3) groupdescription or (4) groupname parameters to modules/groups/addgroupform.php.
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Analysis
by VulDB Data Team • 02/16/2019
The vulnerability identified as CVE-2012-1789 represents a critical cross-site scripting weakness in Kongreg8 version 1.7.3 that exposes the application to remote code execution through malicious web script injection. This flaw specifically targets two distinct input points within the application's membership and group management modules, creating multiple attack vectors for threat actors seeking to compromise user sessions and data integrity. The vulnerability falls under CWE-79 which categorizes improper neutralization of input during web page generation, making it a classic example of unsafe output handling in web applications. The affected parameters include surname and firstname in the addmember.php module and groupdescription and groupname in the addgroupform.php module, all of which fail to properly sanitize user-provided data before rendering it within the web interface.
The operational impact of this vulnerability extends beyond simple data corruption, as it enables attackers to execute arbitrary scripts within the context of authenticated user sessions. When users view pages containing maliciously crafted input, their browsers execute the injected scripts, potentially leading to session hijacking, credential theft, or redirection to malicious sites. The attack requires minimal privileges as it operates entirely through web-based input parameters, making it particularly dangerous in environments where users trust the application's interface. This vulnerability aligns with ATT&CK technique T1566 which describes social engineering attacks through malicious content, specifically targeting web application interfaces to establish persistent access vectors.
The technical implementation of this flaw demonstrates a fundamental lack of input validation and output encoding in the application's data handling processes. When user data enters the system through the identified parameters, it flows directly into HTML output without appropriate sanitization or encoding mechanisms. This creates a chain reaction where malicious payloads can be executed in the victim's browser context, potentially leveraging stored XSS patterns to maintain long-term access to compromised accounts. The vulnerability affects the core membership and group creation functionality, making it particularly dangerous as it targets administrative and user-facing interfaces where legitimate users frequently interact with the application. Organizations deploying Kongreg8 1.7.3 should immediately implement comprehensive input validation measures and output encoding protocols to prevent unauthorized script execution, while also considering the implementation of content security policies to mitigate potential exploitation. The remediation process should include thorough code reviews of all user input handling mechanisms, particularly within modules that process user-generated content for display, to ensure similar vulnerabilities do not exist in other parts of the application.