CVE-2012-4611 in Adaptive Authentication
Summary
by MITRE
Multiple cross-site scripting (XSS) vulnerabilities in EMC RSA Adaptive Authentication On-Premise (AAOP) before 7.0 allow remote attackers to inject arbitrary web script or HTML via unspecified vectors.
If you want to get best quality of vulnerability data, you may have to visit VulDB.
Analysis
by VulDB Data Team • 05/02/2018
The CVE-2012-4611 vulnerability represents a critical security flaw in EMC RSA Adaptive Authentication On-Premise software version 6.1 and earlier, where multiple cross-site scripting vulnerabilities exist that enable remote attackers to execute malicious web scripts or HTML code within the context of authenticated user sessions. This vulnerability specifically affects organizations utilizing the RSA AAOP solution for adaptive authentication services, creating a significant risk to enterprise security infrastructure. The flaw stems from insufficient input validation and output encoding mechanisms within the application's web interface, allowing attackers to inject malicious payloads through unspecified vectors that bypass standard security controls.
The technical implementation of this vulnerability aligns with CWE-79, which categorizes cross-site scripting as a code injection flaw occurring when untrusted data is embedded into web pages without proper validation or encoding. Attackers can exploit this weakness by crafting malicious input that gets reflected back to users through the web application's response, potentially leading to session hijacking, credential theft, or redirection to malicious sites. The unspecified vectors suggest that multiple entry points within the AAOP interface could be compromised, including authentication forms, configuration panels, or administrative interfaces where user-supplied data is processed and displayed.
From an operational perspective, the impact of CVE-2012-4611 extends beyond simple script injection, as it represents a fundamental breach in the web application's security model that could enable attackers to escalate privileges and compromise the entire authentication infrastructure. Organizations relying on RSA AAOP for protecting sensitive systems face potential unauthorized access to critical applications and data, as the vulnerability allows attackers to manipulate user sessions and potentially gain administrative control over the authentication system. The remote nature of the attack vector eliminates the need for physical access or insider knowledge, making this vulnerability particularly dangerous in enterprise environments where such systems are critical for security operations.
Mitigation strategies for CVE-2012-4611 should prioritize immediate patching of the RSA AAOP software to version 7.0 or later, where the vulnerability has been addressed through improved input validation and output encoding mechanisms. Organizations should implement comprehensive web application firewall rules to detect and block suspicious input patterns, while also conducting thorough security assessments of their authentication infrastructure to identify potential exploitation attempts. The remediation process must include validating all user inputs through proper sanitization techniques and ensuring that output encoding is consistently applied to prevent script execution in web contexts. Additionally, security monitoring should be enhanced to detect anomalous behavior patterns that might indicate exploitation attempts, while regular security training for administrators can help prevent social engineering attacks that might leverage this vulnerability. Organizations should also consider implementing network segmentation and access controls to limit the potential damage from successful exploitation, as the vulnerability could enable attackers to move laterally within the network infrastructure. The ATT&CK framework categorizes this type of vulnerability under T1566, which encompasses initial access techniques through malicious input, emphasizing the importance of robust input validation as a primary defense mechanism against such attacks.