CVE-2012-5541 in Twitter Pull
Summary
by MITRE
Cross-site scripting (XSS) vulnerability in the Twitter Pull module 6.x-1.x before 6.x-1.3 and 7.x-1.x before 7.x-1.0-rc3 for Drupal allows remote attackers to inject arbitrary web script or HTML via unspecified vectors related to "data coming from Twitter."
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Analysis
by VulDB Data Team • 03/17/2019
The CVE-2012-5541 vulnerability represents a critical cross-site scripting flaw within the Twitter Pull module for Drupal platforms, specifically affecting versions 6.x-1.x prior to 6.x-1.3 and 7.x-1.x prior to 7.x-1.0-rc3. This vulnerability resides in the module's improper handling of data received from Twitter's API services, creating a persistent security weakness that allows malicious actors to execute arbitrary web scripts or HTML code within the context of affected websites. The vulnerability's classification as a client-side attack vector means that the malicious payload executes in the victim's browser rather than on the server, making it particularly dangerous for web applications that process external data feeds.
The technical flaw stems from inadequate input sanitization and output encoding mechanisms within the Twitter Pull module's data processing pipeline. When the module retrieves tweets from Twitter's API, it fails to properly validate or escape the incoming data before rendering it on Drupal websites. This oversight creates a direct pathway for attackers to inject malicious scripts that can capture user sessions, redirect visitors to phishing sites, or perform other harmful actions. The vulnerability's unspecified vectors suggest that the flaw may manifest through multiple data points within Twitter's API responses, including tweet content, user metadata, or embedded media elements. This broad attack surface increases the exploitability and potential impact of the vulnerability.
The operational impact of CVE-2012-5541 extends beyond simple script injection, as it can enable sophisticated attack chains that compromise entire user sessions and facilitate data exfiltration. Attackers can leverage this vulnerability to perform session hijacking, steal sensitive user information, or manipulate content on affected websites to spread further malicious payloads. The vulnerability particularly affects Drupal websites that rely on the Twitter Pull module to display social media content, making it a significant concern for organizations using social media integration features. According to CWE-79, this vulnerability maps directly to the Common Weakness Enumeration's "Improper Neutralization of Input During Web Page Generation ('Cross-site Scripting')" weakness, which is categorized under the broader family of injection flaws that represent one of the most prevalent security vulnerabilities in web applications.
Organizations affected by this vulnerability should immediately implement mitigation strategies including updating to patched versions of the Twitter Pull module, implementing proper input validation at multiple layers, and deploying content security policies to prevent unauthorized script execution. The ATT&CK framework categorizes this vulnerability under T1059.008 for 'Command and Scripting Interpreter: PowerShell' and T1566.001 for 'Phishing: Spearphishing Attachment', as attackers can use the XSS vulnerability to deliver malicious payloads that align with these techniques. Security measures should include comprehensive monitoring of external data feeds, regular security assessments of third-party modules, and implementation of web application firewalls to detect and prevent such injection attacks. The vulnerability underscores the critical importance of validating all external data inputs and demonstrates how seemingly benign social media integration features can become significant attack vectors when proper security controls are not implemented.