CVE-2012-6359 in Tivoli Federated Identity Manager
Summary
by MITRE
IBM Tivoli Federated Identity Manager (TFIM) 6.2.0 before 6.2.0.11, 6.2.1 before 6.2.1.3, and 6.2.2 before 6.2.2.2 and Tivoli Federated Identity Manager Business Gateway (TFIMBG) 6.2.0 before 6.2.0.11, 6.2.1 before 6.2.1.3, and 6.2.2 before 6.2.2.2 do not check whether an OpenID attribute is signed in the (1) SREG (aka simple registration extension) and (2) AX (aka attribute exchange extension) cases, which allows man-in-the-middle attackers to spoof OpenID provider data by inserting unsigned attributes.
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Analysis
by VulDB Data Team • 02/09/2018
The vulnerability described in CVE-2012-6359 affects IBM Tivoli Federated Identity Manager versions prior to specific patch releases, including TFIM 6.2.0 through 6.2.2 and the corresponding Business Gateway versions. This flaw represents a critical security weakness in the OpenID authentication framework implementation within these identity management products. The vulnerability specifically targets the validation mechanisms for OpenID attributes, which are essential components of federated identity systems that enable secure single sign-on across multiple domains. The issue impacts both the Simple Registration (SREG) extension and the Attribute Exchange (AX) extension, which are fundamental protocols used to exchange user identity information between OpenID providers and relying parties.
The technical flaw stems from the failure to validate signature authenticity for OpenID attributes within the SREG and AX extensions. In proper OpenID implementations, attributes should be cryptographically signed by the provider to ensure their integrity and authenticity. When these signatures are not verified, attackers can exploit this gap through man-in-the-middle attacks to inject unsigned attributes that appear legitimate to the system. This validation failure creates a trust boundary breach where the system accepts potentially malicious data without proper authentication checks. The vulnerability directly relates to CWE-347, which addresses the lack of proper validation of cryptographic signatures, and represents a significant weakness in the authentication and authorization processes that these identity management systems are designed to protect.
The operational impact of this vulnerability is severe as it allows attackers to completely compromise the integrity of OpenID provider data within the federated identity environment. An attacker positioned between the user and the identity provider can intercept communications and insert unsigned attributes that the system will accept as legitimate. This spoofing capability undermines the entire purpose of federated identity management, potentially allowing unauthorized access to protected systems and resources. The vulnerability affects organizations that rely on TFIM for managing user identities across multiple applications and services, making it particularly dangerous in enterprise environments where identity federation is extensively used. Attackers could exploit this to gain access to sensitive systems, impersonate legitimate users, or manipulate identity data to facilitate further attacks.
Organizations should immediately implement the vendor-provided patches for TFIM 6.2.0 through 6.2.2 and the corresponding Business Gateway versions to address this vulnerability. The recommended mitigation strategy involves applying the specific patch releases mentioned in the CVE description, which would restore proper signature validation for OpenID attributes. Additionally, organizations should consider implementing network-level monitoring to detect unusual attribute exchanges and establish additional validation controls. From an ATT&CK perspective, this vulnerability maps to techniques involving credential access and privilege escalation through manipulation of authentication data. Security teams should also review their existing identity federation policies and consider implementing additional layers of authentication verification beyond what is provided by the vulnerable components. Regular security assessments of identity management systems are essential to identify and remediate similar signature validation weaknesses in other components of the federated identity infrastructure.