CVE-2012-4839 in Rational ClearQuest
Summary
by MITRE
The OSLC interface in the Web Client (aka CQ Web) in IBM Rational ClearQuest 7.1.2.x before 7.1.2.9 and 8.0.0.x before 8.0.0.5 allows remote attackers to conduct phishing attacks via a FRAME element.
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Analysis
by VulDB Data Team • 12/21/2021
The vulnerability identified as CVE-2012-4839 represents a significant security flaw in IBM Rational ClearQuest's Web Client interface, specifically within its OSLC (Open Services for Lifecycle Collaboration) implementation. This weakness exists in versions 7.1.2.x prior to 7.1.2.9 and 8.0.0.x prior to 8.0.0.5, creating a dangerous pathway for malicious actors to exploit the system's trust relationships. The vulnerability stems from inadequate input validation and output sanitization mechanisms within the OSLC interface, which fails to properly filter or escape user-supplied content that gets rendered in web contexts.
The technical exploitation of this vulnerability occurs through the manipulation of FRAME elements within the OSLC interface, allowing attackers to inject malicious content that can deceive users into believing they are interacting with legitimate system components. This phishing attack vector leverages the trust relationship between the user's browser and the ClearQuest web client, where legitimate-looking interfaces can be constructed to mimic authentic system pages. The flaw directly relates to CWE-74, which describes improper neutralization of special elements used in output rendering, and CWE-79, covering cross-site scripting vulnerabilities that occur when untrusted data is used to generate web content without proper sanitization.
The operational impact of this vulnerability extends beyond simple phishing attempts, as it can enable more sophisticated attacks including credential theft, session hijacking, and data exfiltration from within the organization's trusted network boundaries. Attackers can craft malicious OSLC requests that, when clicked by unsuspecting users, display deceptive content that appears to be legitimate ClearQuest functionality while actually serving malicious payloads. This vulnerability particularly affects organizations that rely heavily on ClearQuest for requirements management, issue tracking, and change control processes, as compromised access could lead to unauthorized modifications of critical system data and workflow processes.
Organizations should implement immediate mitigations including applying the vendor-provided security patches that address this specific vulnerability, implementing strict content security policies to prevent unauthorized FRAME element usage, and conducting thorough security reviews of all OSLC-enabled interfaces. The ATT&CK framework categorizes this vulnerability under T1566, which covers phishing techniques, and T1071, covering application layer protocols, as attackers exploit the legitimate web interface to deliver malicious payloads. Network segmentation and monitoring solutions should be deployed to detect anomalous OSLC interface usage patterns, while user education programs should emphasize the importance of verifying interface authenticity before engaging with system elements. Additionally, implementing proper input validation and output encoding mechanisms within the OSLC interface will prevent similar vulnerabilities from emerging in future versions of the software.