CVE-2014-0854 in Cognos Business Intelligence
Summary
by MITRE
The server in IBM Cognos Business Intelligence (BI) 8.4.1, 10.1 before IF6, 10.1.1 before IF5, 10.2 before IF7, 10.2.1 before IF4, and 10.2.1.1 before IF4 allows remote authenticated users to read arbitrary files via an XML document containing an external entity declaration in conjunction with an entity reference, related to an XML External Entity (XXE) issue.
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Analysis
by VulDB Data Team • 02/22/2018
The vulnerability identified as CVE-2014-0854 represents a critical XML External Entity (XXE) flaw within IBM Cognos Business Intelligence software across multiple versions including 8.4.1, 10.1 before IF6, 10.1.1 before IF5, 10.2 before IF7, 10.2.1 before IF4, and 10.2.1.1 before IF4. This security weakness stems from the server component's improper handling of XML input, specifically when processing XML documents that contain external entity declarations. The flaw allows authenticated remote attackers to exploit the system by crafting malicious XML payloads that reference external entities, enabling unauthorized file access through the application's XML processing capabilities. The vulnerability is classified under CWE-611 as an Improper Restriction of XML External Entity Reference, which directly maps to the XXE attack pattern described in the MITRE ATT&CK framework under technique T1213.002 for Data from Information Repositories.
The technical implementation of this vulnerability occurs when the IBM Cognos BI server processes XML documents that contain external entity declarations within the XML structure. Attackers can construct XML documents that include entity references pointing to local files on the server system, allowing them to read arbitrary files from the filesystem through the application's XML parser. This occurs because the server fails to properly validate or restrict external entity references during XML processing, enabling attackers to leverage the XML parser's capabilities to access sensitive files that should remain protected. The authenticated nature of the vulnerability means that attackers must first establish valid credentials to exploit the flaw, but once authenticated, they can potentially access any file that the application process has read permissions for, including configuration files, database connection details, and other sensitive system information.
The operational impact of this vulnerability extends beyond simple information disclosure, as it can lead to significant data breaches and system compromise within enterprise environments where IBM Cognos BI is deployed. Organizations using affected versions of the software face the risk of unauthorized access to sensitive business intelligence data, potential exposure of internal system configurations, and possible escalation to more severe attacks if the compromised application has elevated privileges. The vulnerability particularly affects enterprise environments where business intelligence systems contain access to critical operational data, making it a prime target for attackers seeking to extract valuable business information. The impact is further amplified by the fact that the vulnerability exists in multiple versions of the software, requiring organizations to identify and patch all affected installations across their infrastructure. This vulnerability can be exploited to gain access to sensitive data through the XML processing capabilities, potentially leading to complete system compromise if the application has access to critical system resources.
Organizations should implement immediate mitigations including applying the relevant IBM security patches and updates that address this XXE vulnerability, as well as implementing proper XML input validation and sanitization within their applications. System administrators should disable external entity processing in XML parsers where possible and implement network-level restrictions to limit access to the affected IBM Cognos BI server components. The implementation of proper access controls and monitoring mechanisms can help detect potential exploitation attempts, while regular security assessments should be conducted to ensure that all instances of the vulnerable software are properly patched and secured. Additionally, organizations should consider implementing web application firewalls that can detect and block malicious XML content attempting to exploit XXE vulnerabilities, providing an additional layer of protection against this specific class of attack.