CVE-2014-2511 in Documentum WebTop
Summary
by MITRE
Multiple cross-site scripting (XSS) vulnerabilities in EMC Documentum WebTop before 6.7 SP1 P28 and 6.7 SP2 before P14 allow remote attackers to inject arbitrary web script or HTML via the (1) startat or (2) entryId parameter.
If you want to get best quality of vulnerability data, you may have to visit VulDB.
Analysis
by VulDB Data Team • 03/28/2022
The vulnerability identified as CVE-2014-2511 represents a critical cross-site scripting flaw affecting EMC Documentum WebTop versions prior to specific service pack releases. This vulnerability resides within the web application's parameter handling mechanism, specifically targeting the startat and entryId input parameters that are processed without adequate sanitization or validation. The flaw enables remote attackers to execute malicious scripts within the context of authenticated users' browsers, potentially compromising the security of the entire Documentum WebTop environment.
The technical exploitation of this vulnerability occurs through the manipulation of URL parameters that are directly incorporated into the application's response without proper input filtering or output encoding. When attackers craft malicious payloads and inject them into the startat or entryId parameters, these inputs are subsequently rendered in the web page context, allowing the execution of arbitrary JavaScript code. This type of vulnerability falls under CWE-79 which specifically addresses Cross-Site Scripting flaws in web applications where untrusted data is improperly integrated into web pages viewed by other users.
The operational impact of this vulnerability extends beyond simple script execution, as it provides attackers with the capability to perform session hijacking, steal user credentials, modify content, or redirect users to malicious sites. Given that Documentum WebTop serves as a document management platform, successful exploitation could lead to unauthorized access to sensitive corporate documents, data exfiltration, or complete compromise of the document management system. The vulnerability affects both the 6.7 SP1 and 6.7 SP2 versions, indicating a widespread issue within the product line that required multiple service pack releases to address.
From an attack perspective, this vulnerability aligns with ATT&CK technique T1531 which involves the use of malicious scripts to gain access to user sessions. The remote nature of the attack means that no local access is required, making it particularly dangerous as attackers can exploit this vulnerability from anywhere on the internet. The fact that the vulnerability affects parameters used in navigation and document retrieval makes it particularly insidious since legitimate users would naturally interact with these parameters during normal operations, increasing the attack surface. Organizations using affected versions of EMC Documentum WebTop should immediately implement the available patches and consider implementing additional security measures such as input validation at the web application firewall level to prevent exploitation attempts.
The remediation strategy for this vulnerability requires immediate deployment of the service pack updates provided by EMC, specifically SP1 P28 for version 6.7 and SP2 P14 for the corresponding release. Additionally, organizations should implement comprehensive input validation and output encoding mechanisms to prevent similar vulnerabilities from occurring in other components of their Documentum WebTop environment. Security monitoring should be enhanced to detect unusual parameter patterns that might indicate exploitation attempts, and regular security assessments should be conducted to identify other potential injection points within the application.