CVE-2015-4207 in WebEx Meeting Center
Summary
by MITRE
Cisco WebEx Meeting Center places a meeting's access number in a URL, which allows remote attackers to obtain sensitive information and bypass intended attendance restrictions by visiting a meeting-registration page, aka Bug ID CSCus62147.
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Analysis
by VulDB Data Team • 05/21/2022
The vulnerability identified as CVE-2015-4207 affects Cisco WebEx Meeting Center, a widely used web conferencing platform that enables organizations to conduct virtual meetings and collaborate remotely. This security flaw represents a critical information disclosure issue that undermines the platform's access control mechanisms and potentially exposes sensitive meeting data to unauthorized parties.
The technical implementation of this vulnerability stems from the insecure handling of meeting access parameters within the WebEx Meeting Center application. Specifically, the system embeds meeting access numbers directly into Uniform Resource Locator (URL) structures when generating meeting registration pages. This design flaw creates a predictable and easily accessible method for attackers to obtain valid meeting access credentials without proper authentication or authorization. The access number, which serves as a critical component for meeting entry and attendance control, becomes exposed in the URL parameters, making it trivial for malicious actors to extract and utilize this information.
The operational impact of this vulnerability extends beyond simple information disclosure, as it fundamentally compromises the intended security model of the WebEx platform. Attackers can exploit this weakness to bypass attendance restrictions that are typically enforced through proper authentication mechanisms, potentially gaining unauthorized access to private meetings, sensitive business discussions, or confidential corporate information. The vulnerability affects the platform's ability to maintain meeting confidentiality and restrict access to authorized participants only, creating potential risks for organizations handling sensitive data during virtual meetings.
This vulnerability aligns with CWE-200, which addresses "Information Exposure," and represents a specific implementation of information disclosure through predictable URL parameters. The flaw also maps to ATT&CK technique T1071.004, which covers "Application Layer Protocol: DNS," as attackers can potentially use the exposed access numbers to craft targeted attacks against specific meetings. Organizations using Cisco WebEx Meeting Center face significant risks when this vulnerability remains unpatched, as it creates a persistent attack surface that can be exploited by threat actors without requiring advanced technical skills or significant resources.
The security implications of CVE-2015-4207 highlight the importance of proper input validation and secure parameter handling in web applications. Organizations should implement immediate mitigations including URL parameter obfuscation, access control enforcement, and monitoring for unauthorized access attempts. Cisco released patches to address this vulnerability, and organizations must ensure prompt deployment of these updates to maintain the security posture of their WebEx implementations. Additionally, administrators should consider implementing network-level controls to monitor for suspicious URL patterns and establish robust access logging mechanisms to detect potential exploitation attempts.