CVE-2014-9433 in Contenido
Summary
by MITRE
Multiple cross-site scripting (XSS) vulnerabilities in cms/front_content.php in Contenido before 4.9.6, when advanced mod rewrite (AMR) is disabled, allow remote attackers to inject arbitrary web script or HTML via the (1) idart, (2) lang, or (3) idcat parameter.
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Analysis
by VulDB Data Team • 04/10/2022
The vulnerability identified as CVE-2014-9433 represents a critical cross-site scripting weakness in the Contenido content management system affecting versions prior to 4.9.6. This vulnerability specifically targets the cms/front_content.php script and manifests when the advanced mod rewrite functionality is disabled within the system configuration. The flaw enables remote attackers to execute malicious web scripts or HTML code within the context of users' browsers, potentially compromising user sessions and data integrity. The vulnerability affects three distinct parameter inputs including idart, lang, and idcat which are commonly used for content identification and language selection within the CMS framework.
The technical nature of this vulnerability aligns with CWE-79 which categorizes cross-site scripting flaws as weaknesses that occur when an application fails to properly validate or escape user-supplied input before incorporating it into dynamically generated web pages. The vulnerability operates through a classic injection attack pattern where malicious input is accepted through the web application's parameter handling mechanisms and subsequently rendered without proper sanitization or encoding. When advanced mod rewrite is disabled, the system's URL routing mechanism does not properly sanitize incoming parameters, creating an attack surface that allows malicious actors to inject arbitrary script code that executes in the victim's browser context.
The operational impact of this vulnerability extends beyond simple script injection, as it can enable attackers to perform session hijacking, steal sensitive user information, manipulate content displayed to other users, and potentially escalate privileges within the CMS environment. Attackers can craft malicious URLs containing script payloads in any of the three vulnerable parameters, and when users navigate to these URLs, the injected code executes in their browsers. This creates a persistent threat vector that can be exploited through social engineering techniques, phishing campaigns, or by compromising legitimate website content to redirect users to malicious pages. The vulnerability particularly affects organizations using Contenido CMS without advanced mod rewrite enabled, which represents a significant portion of older installations that may not have been updated to newer versions.
Mitigation strategies for CVE-2014-9433 should prioritize immediate patching of the Contenido CMS to version 4.9.6 or later where the vulnerability has been addressed through proper input validation and sanitization mechanisms. Organizations should also implement proper parameter validation at multiple layers including input filtering, output encoding, and content security policies to prevent similar vulnerabilities from manifesting in other parts of the application. The implementation of CSP headers and proper HTML escaping techniques can provide additional defense-in-depth measures against XSS attacks. Security teams should also conduct comprehensive vulnerability assessments to identify other potential injection points within the CMS and related applications, as this vulnerability may indicate broader input validation issues that require systematic remediation. Additionally, implementing web application firewalls and monitoring for suspicious parameter patterns can help detect and prevent exploitation attempts while the permanent fixes are being deployed. The ATT&CK framework categorizes this vulnerability under the T1059.008 technique for script injection, emphasizing the need for robust input validation and output encoding practices as recommended by OWASP and other security standards.