CVE-2012-2582 in OTRS
Summary
by MITRE
Multiple cross-site scripting (XSS) vulnerabilities in Open Ticket Request System (OTRS) Help Desk 2.4.x before 2.4.13, 3.0.x before 3.0.15, and 3.1.x before 3.1.9, and OTRS ITSM 2.1.x before 2.1.5, 3.0.x before 3.0.6, and 3.1.x before 3.1.6, allow remote attackers to inject arbitrary web script or HTML via an e-mail message body with (1) a Cascading Style Sheets (CSS) expression property in the STYLE attribute of an arbitrary element or (2) UTF-7 text in an HTTP-EQUIV="CONTENT-TYPE" META element.
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Analysis
by VulDB Data Team • 09/29/2025
The CVE-2012-2582 vulnerability represents a critical cross-site scripting flaw affecting multiple versions of Open Ticket Request System (OTRS) Help Desk and OTRS ITSM platforms. This vulnerability exists in versions 2.4.x before 2.4.13, 3.0.x before 3.0.15, 3.1.x before 3.1.9, and their corresponding ITSM versions with similar version constraints. The flaw stems from inadequate input validation and sanitization mechanisms within the email message processing functionality of these systems, creating exploitable entry points for malicious actors to inject arbitrary web scripts or HTML content.
The technical implementation of this vulnerability occurs through two distinct attack vectors that leverage different aspects of web application processing. The first vector involves CSS expression properties within the STYLE attribute of arbitrary HTML elements, allowing attackers to embed malicious CSS code that executes when the compromised email message is rendered in a web browser. The second vector exploits UTF-7 encoding in HTTP-EQUIV="CONTENT-TYPE" META elements, which can bypass standard input sanitization filters due to the way browsers interpret UTF-7 character encoding. Both attack methods exploit the fundamental weakness in the system's inability to properly sanitize user-supplied content before rendering it within the web interface, making this a classic example of improper input validation as classified by CWE-79.
The operational impact of this vulnerability extends far beyond simple script injection, as it enables attackers to execute malicious code within the context of authenticated users' browsers. This creates opportunities for session hijacking, credential theft, data exfiltration, and privilege escalation attacks. Attackers can leverage these vulnerabilities to gain unauthorized access to sensitive customer information, manipulate ticketing data, and potentially compromise entire help desk systems. The vulnerability affects both the OTRS Help Desk and OTRS ITSM products, indicating a systemic issue in the core message processing components that handle email content, making it particularly dangerous for organizations relying on these platforms for customer support and IT service management operations.
Organizations affected by this vulnerability should implement immediate mitigations including upgrading to patched versions of OTRS, specifically versions 2.4.13, 3.0.15, 3.1.9, 2.1.5, 3.0.6, and 3.1.6 respectively. Additionally, administrators should implement comprehensive input sanitization measures, including strict validation of email content, filtering of CSS expressions, and enforcement of proper character encoding standards. Network-level protections such as web application firewalls and content security policies can provide additional defense-in-depth measures. From an ATT&CK framework perspective, this vulnerability maps to techniques involving code injection and credential access, with potential for privilege escalation through session manipulation and data theft operations. The vulnerability's classification under CWE-79 highlights the critical importance of implementing robust input validation and output encoding mechanisms as recommended by OWASP and other security standards organizations.