CVE-2012-3695 in iOS
Summary
by MITRE
Cross-site scripting (XSS) vulnerability in WebKit in Apple Safari before 6.0 allows remote attackers to inject arbitrary web script or HTML by leveraging improper URL canonicalization during the handling of the location.href property.
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Analysis
by VulDB Data Team • 01/04/2025
The vulnerability described in CVE-2012-3695 represents a critical cross-site scripting flaw within Apple Safari's WebKit rendering engine that existed prior to version 6.0. This security weakness stems from improper URL canonicalization processes that occur when handling the location.href property within web applications. The flaw enables remote attackers to execute malicious scripts by manipulating URL parameters in ways that bypass normal security restrictions. The vulnerability specifically targets the browser's internal mechanisms for processing and normalizing web addresses, creating a pathway for attackers to inject arbitrary web script or HTML content that gets executed in the context of the victim's browser session.
The technical implementation of this vulnerability exploits the way WebKit processes URL canonicalization, particularly when the location.href property is manipulated. When Safari encounters certain malformed or specially crafted URLs, the browser's URL handling logic fails to properly sanitize or normalize the input before rendering it within the web page context. This improper canonicalization allows attackers to inject malicious code that gets interpreted as legitimate content by the browser's rendering engine. The vulnerability operates at the browser level rather than at the web application level, making it particularly dangerous as it can affect any website that relies on standard URL handling mechanisms within Safari. The flaw essentially creates a condition where user-supplied URL data is not properly validated or escaped before being processed by the browser's JavaScript engine.
From an operational perspective, this vulnerability presents significant risks to users of affected Safari versions, as it enables attackers to perform a wide range of malicious activities including session hijacking, credential theft, and data exfiltration. The remote nature of the attack means that users can be compromised simply by visiting a malicious website or clicking on a crafted link, without requiring any additional user interaction or installation of malicious software. Attackers can leverage this vulnerability to execute persistent XSS attacks that can remain active across multiple browsing sessions, potentially allowing for long-term surveillance of user activities and capture of sensitive information. The impact extends beyond individual user compromise to potentially affect corporate security environments where Safari is the primary browser used by employees.
Security professionals should implement immediate mitigations including updating to Safari 6.0 or later versions where the vulnerability has been addressed through proper URL canonicalization handling. Organizations should also deploy web application firewalls and content security policies that can detect and block suspicious URL patterns that might exploit this vulnerability. The mitigation strategy should include regular browser updates as part of enterprise security policies, along with user education about avoiding suspicious links and websites. Additionally, implementing proper input validation and output encoding at the application level can provide defense-in-depth measures against similar vulnerabilities. This vulnerability aligns with CWE-79 which specifically addresses cross-site scripting flaws, and maps to ATT&CK technique T1566 for social engineering attacks that leverage web-based exploits. The remediation efforts should focus on ensuring that all web content processing systems properly validate URL inputs and implement robust sanitization mechanisms to prevent malicious code injection through URL manipulation.