CVE-2012-1859 in SharePoint
Summary
by MITRE
Cross-site scripting (XSS) vulnerability in scriptresx.ashx in Microsoft SharePoint Server 2010 Gold and SP1, SharePoint Foundation 2010 Gold and SP1, and Office Web Apps 2010 Gold and SP1 allows remote attackers to inject arbitrary web script or HTML via crafted JavaScript elements in a URL, aka "XSS scriptresx.ashx Vulnerability."
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Analysis
by VulDB Data Team • 03/26/2021
The CVE-2012-1859 vulnerability represents a critical cross-site scripting flaw in Microsoft SharePoint Server 2010 and SharePoint Foundation 2010 components, specifically within the scriptresx.ashx handler. This vulnerability affects multiple Microsoft products including SharePoint Server 2010 Gold and SP1, SharePoint Foundation 2010 Gold and SP1, and Office Web Apps 2010 Gold and SP1 versions. The flaw resides in how these applications process and render URL parameters containing JavaScript elements, creating an avenue for remote attackers to execute malicious code within the context of authenticated user sessions.
The technical implementation of this vulnerability stems from insufficient input validation and output encoding within the scriptresx.ashx handler component. When users navigate to URLs containing crafted JavaScript payloads, the system fails to properly sanitize or encode the input parameters before rendering them in web responses. This allows attackers to inject malicious scripts that execute in the victim's browser context, potentially stealing session cookies, performing unauthorized actions, or redirecting users to malicious sites. The vulnerability specifically targets the processing of resource files and script references within the SharePoint framework, making it particularly dangerous in enterprise environments where SharePoint is extensively used for collaboration and document management.
The operational impact of CVE-2012-1859 extends beyond simple script injection, as it can enable attackers to perform sophisticated attacks such as session hijacking, data exfiltration, and privilege escalation within SharePoint environments. In enterprise settings where SharePoint serves as a central collaboration platform, successful exploitation could compromise sensitive business data, user credentials, and internal network resources. The vulnerability is particularly concerning because it affects widely deployed SharePoint infrastructure and can be exploited without requiring authentication, making it a prime target for automated attacks. Security researchers have classified this as a high-severity vulnerability due to its potential for widespread impact across organizations utilizing affected Microsoft products.
Organizations should implement multiple layers of defense to mitigate this vulnerability, including immediate patching of affected systems, implementation of web application firewalls, and enhanced input validation controls. The vulnerability aligns with CWE-79 which describes cross-site scripting flaws, and corresponds to attack patterns documented in the MITRE ATT&CK framework under web application attacks. Microsoft released security updates addressing this issue through their regular patching cycle, and organizations should prioritize deployment of these patches while implementing additional security controls such as content security policies and proper input sanitization measures. Regular security assessments and monitoring of SharePoint environments remain crucial for early detection of exploitation attempts and maintaining overall security posture against similar vulnerabilities.