CVE-2013-0587 in WebSphere Portal
Summary
by MITRE
Multiple cross-site scripting (XSS) vulnerabilities in IBM WebSphere Portal before 8.0.0.1 CF07 allow remote attackers to inject arbitrary web script or HTML via vectors involving the (1) Portal, (2) Portal 7.0.0.2, (3) Portal 8.0, or (4) PortalWeb2 theme.
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Analysis
by VulDB Data Team • 05/21/2021
The vulnerability identified as CVE-2013-0587 represents a critical cross-site scripting flaw affecting IBM WebSphere Portal versions prior to 8.0.0.1 CF07. This vulnerability exposes multiple attack vectors through various portal themes and versions including Portal 7.0.0.2, Portal 8.0, and the PortalWeb2 theme, creating widespread exposure across IBM's portal ecosystem. The flaw allows remote attackers to execute malicious scripts within the context of a victim's browser session, potentially compromising user data and system integrity.
The technical implementation of this vulnerability stems from insufficient input validation and output encoding within the portal's theme rendering mechanisms. Attackers can exploit this weakness by injecting malicious scripts or HTML code through carefully crafted requests that target the affected portal components. The vulnerability specifically affects how the portal processes and renders content within the identified themes, where user-supplied data is not properly sanitized before being displayed to end users. This failure in input sanitization creates an environment where attacker-controlled content can be executed as legitimate script within the victim's browser context, fundamentally undermining the security boundaries of the portal application.
The operational impact of CVE-2013-0587 extends beyond simple script execution, as it can enable attackers to perform session hijacking, steal sensitive user credentials, manipulate portal functionality, and potentially escalate privileges within the portal environment. The vulnerability affects users across multiple portal versions, creating a broad attack surface that could compromise organizations relying on IBM WebSphere Portal for their web applications. Attackers could leverage this vulnerability to gain unauthorized access to user sessions, modify portal content, or redirect users to malicious sites, making it particularly dangerous in enterprise environments where portal systems handle sensitive business data and user information.
Organizations should immediately implement the vendor-provided security patches for IBM WebSphere Portal 8.0.0.1 CF07 and subsequent versions to remediate this vulnerability. Additionally, implementing proper input validation mechanisms, output encoding, and content security policies can help mitigate the risk of exploitation. The vulnerability aligns with CWE-79, which specifically addresses cross-site scripting flaws in web applications, and represents a significant concern under the ATT&CK framework's initial access and persistence categories. Security monitoring should include detection of suspicious script injection attempts and anomalous user behavior patterns that may indicate exploitation attempts. Regular security assessments and penetration testing should be conducted to identify similar vulnerabilities within the portal infrastructure and ensure comprehensive protection against evolving attack vectors targeting web application frameworks.