CVE-2014-9624 in MantisBT
Summary
by MITRE
CAPTCHA bypass vulnerability in MantisBT before 1.2.19.
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Analysis
by VulDB Data Team • 01/11/2021
The CVE-2014-9624 vulnerability represents a critical security flaw in MantisBT version 1.2.18 and earlier, where the system fails to properly validate CAPTCHA responses during user authentication and registration processes. This vulnerability allows malicious actors to bypass the CAPTCHA protection mechanism that is designed to prevent automated bot attacks and spam registration. The flaw stems from improper input validation and insufficient session management during the CAPTCHA verification process, creating a pathway for unauthorized users to circumvent the intended security controls.
This vulnerability operates at the application layer and specifically targets the authentication and user registration workflows within the MantisBT issue tracking system. The technical implementation error occurs when the application fails to properly verify CAPTCHA responses against the expected values, allowing attackers to submit requests with invalid or missing CAPTCHA data while still gaining access to protected functions. The flaw exists in the server-side validation logic where CAPTCHA verification is either disabled entirely or not properly enforced during critical user operations. This represents a weakness in the input validation controls and demonstrates poor secure coding practices that align with CWE-20, which addresses improper input validation.
The operational impact of this vulnerability is significant for organizations using affected MantisBT versions, as it enables automated attack vectors that can lead to spam registration, account creation, and potential system abuse. Attackers can exploit this flaw to flood the system with fake user accounts, potentially leading to service degradation, resource exhaustion, and unauthorized access to sensitive project data. The vulnerability also creates opportunities for more sophisticated attacks such as credential stuffing or account takeover attempts, particularly when combined with other weaknesses in the authentication system. Organizations may experience increased maintenance overhead due to spam accounts and potential data integrity issues that could compromise the reliability of their issue tracking system.
Mitigation strategies for CVE-2014-9624 require immediate patching of the MantisBT system to version 1.2.19 or later, which contains the necessary fixes for the CAPTCHA validation logic. System administrators should also implement additional monitoring controls to detect unusual registration patterns and automated account creation attempts. Network-level protections such as rate limiting and IP address restrictions can help reduce the impact of automated attacks while patches are being deployed. Organizations should also consider implementing multi-factor authentication mechanisms and enhanced session management controls to provide additional layers of security beyond the basic CAPTCHA protection. This vulnerability aligns with ATT&CK technique T1110 which covers credential access through various methods including bypassing security controls and exploiting weak authentication mechanisms. The fix addresses the core issue by strengthening the CAPTCHA validation process and ensuring proper session state management during user authentication flows.