CVE-2013-5426 in InfoSphere Master Data Management Collaboration Server
Summary
by MITRE
Session fixation vulnerability in IBM InfoSphere Master Data Management - Collaborative Edition 10.x before 10.1 IF5 and 11.0 before IF1 and InfoSphere Master Data Management Server for Product Information Management 9.x before 9.1 IF11 allows remote authenticated users to hijack web sessions via unspecified vectors.
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Analysis
by VulDB Data Team • 02/25/2018
The CVE-2013-5426 vulnerability represents a critical session fixation flaw within IBM InfoSphere Master Data Management products, specifically affecting versions prior to the specified interim fixes. This vulnerability resides in the web application layer of IBM's master data management solutions, which are designed to manage and synchronize critical business data across enterprise systems. The affected products include both the Collaborative Edition and the Product Information Management Server, indicating a widespread impact across IBM's master data management portfolio. The vulnerability allows remote authenticated attackers to exploit web session management mechanisms, potentially enabling them to assume the identity of legitimate users within the system.
The technical nature of this session fixation vulnerability stems from improper session handling within the web application framework of IBM InfoSphere products. Session fixation occurs when an application fails to properly invalidate or regenerate session identifiers upon user authentication, allowing an attacker who knows a valid session token to reuse that token to hijack an active user session. In IBM InfoSphere's case, the vulnerability manifests through unspecified vectors that likely involve the web server's session management implementation or the authentication flow between client and server components. The flaw essentially permits an attacker to establish a known session identifier and then convince a victim to use that same identifier, effectively bypassing authentication mechanisms and gaining unauthorized access to user sessions.
The operational impact of this vulnerability extends beyond simple unauthorized access, potentially allowing attackers to perform privileged operations within the master data management environment. Since these products handle sensitive business data including customer information, product catalogs, and master data entities, session hijacking could enable attackers to modify, delete, or extract confidential information. The vulnerability affects authenticated users, meaning that an attacker would need valid credentials to initiate the attack, but once successful, could maintain persistent access to the system. The impact is particularly concerning for enterprise environments where master data management systems serve as central repositories for critical business information, making them attractive targets for data exfiltration or manipulation attacks.
Organizations affected by this vulnerability should immediately implement mitigations including applying the relevant interim fixes provided by IBM, specifically upgrading to IBM InfoSphere Master Data Management 10.1 IF5, 11.0 IF1, or 9.1 IF11 for the Product Information Management Server. The remediation process should involve comprehensive testing of the updated systems to ensure compatibility with existing workflows and data management processes. Security administrators should also implement additional monitoring measures to detect potential exploitation attempts, including reviewing web server logs for suspicious session token usage patterns. From a defensive standpoint, this vulnerability aligns with CWE-384, which addresses session fixation issues in web applications, and maps to ATT&CK technique T1563.002 for credential access through session hijacking. Organizations should also consider implementing additional security controls such as secure session management practices, regular session token rotation, and network-level monitoring to detect and prevent unauthorized session reuse attempts.