CVE-2012-2079 in Activity Module
Summary
by MITRE
A cross-site request forgery (CSRF) vulnerability in the Activity module 6.x-1.x for Drupal.
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Analysis
by VulDB Data Team • 02/26/2024
The CVE-2012-2079 vulnerability represents a critical cross-site request forgery flaw within the Activity module version 6.x-1.x for the Drupal content management system. This vulnerability resides in the module's handling of user authentication and session management, creating a pathway for malicious actors to execute unauthorized actions on behalf of authenticated users. The issue stems from the module's failure to implement proper anti-CSRF token validation mechanisms, allowing attackers to craft malicious requests that exploit the trust relationship between the user's browser and the vulnerable Drupal site. The vulnerability specifically affects the Activity module's ability to distinguish between legitimate user requests and forged requests originating from external domains.
The technical exploitation of this CSRF vulnerability occurs when an authenticated user visits a malicious website that contains crafted HTML forms or scripts designed to submit requests to the vulnerable Drupal site. Without proper CSRF token validation, the Drupal system processes these forged requests as legitimate actions performed by the authenticated user. The flaw manifests in the module's lack of implementation for the OWASP CSRF Prevention techniques, particularly the absence of synchronizer tokens that would normally be required for each state-changing request. This vulnerability falls under CWE-352, which specifically addresses Cross-Site Request Forgery weaknesses in software applications.
The operational impact of CVE-2012-2079 extends beyond simple data theft or modification, as authenticated users with appropriate permissions can be exploited to perform administrative actions within the Drupal environment. Attackers could potentially escalate privileges, modify user accounts, delete content, or manipulate the activity stream functionality that the module is designed to track. The vulnerability creates a persistent risk for organizations relying on Drupal's Activity module, as the attack vector requires minimal user interaction beyond visiting a malicious page, making it particularly dangerous in phishing campaigns or compromised websites. This flaw directly aligns with ATT&CK technique T1566, which describes social engineering methods used to gain initial access through deceptive means.
Mitigation strategies for this CSRF vulnerability require immediate implementation of proper anti-CSRF token mechanisms within the Activity module. Organizations should upgrade to patched versions of the module or implement custom solutions that generate and validate unique tokens for each user session. The recommended approach includes implementing the standard CSRF protection patterns such as the use of one-time tokens that are validated on the server-side before processing any state-changing requests. Security measures should also include monitoring for suspicious activity patterns in the activity logs and implementing additional authentication layers such as two-factor authentication to reduce the impact of successful exploitation. The vulnerability highlights the importance of maintaining up-to-date security practices and regular security audits of third-party modules in open-source platforms.