CVE-2015-5351 in Tomcat
Summary
by MITRE
The (1) Manager and (2) Host Manager applications in Apache Tomcat 7.x before 7.0.68, 8.x before 8.0.31, and 9.x before 9.0.0.M2 establish sessions and send CSRF tokens for arbitrary new requests, which allows remote attackers to bypass a CSRF protection mechanism by using a token.
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Analysis
by VulDB Data Team • 07/08/2022
The vulnerability described in CVE-2015-5351 represents a critical flaw in Apache Tomcat's Cross-Site Request Forgery (CSRF) protection mechanism affecting multiple versions of the popular web application server. This weakness specifically impacts the Manager and Host Manager applications that are part of Tomcat's administrative interface, creating a scenario where attackers can exploit the session management and token generation processes to bypass security controls designed to prevent unauthorized administrative actions.
The technical flaw manifests in how Tomcat handles session establishment and CSRF token generation for new requests. When legitimate users interact with the Manager or Host Manager applications, the system creates sessions and generates CSRF tokens to protect against cross-site request forgery attacks. However, the vulnerability allows remote attackers to manipulate this process such that tokens are generated for arbitrary requests without proper validation. This means that an attacker can craft malicious requests that leverage valid CSRF tokens to perform administrative actions on behalf of authenticated users, effectively bypassing the intended protection mechanisms.
The operational impact of this vulnerability is severe as it enables attackers to perform privileged actions within the Tomcat administrative interface without proper authentication. Since the Manager and Host Manager applications typically provide access to critical server functions such as deploying applications, managing virtual hosts, stopping and starting services, and accessing sensitive server configurations, unauthorized access to these interfaces can result in complete server compromise. Attackers could potentially deploy malicious applications, modify server configurations, or gain persistent access to the underlying system through the compromised administrative interface.
This vulnerability aligns with CWE-352, which specifically addresses Cross-Site Request Forgery weaknesses in web applications. The flaw demonstrates a failure in proper token validation and session management that directly violates security principles designed to prevent unauthorized actions. From an ATT&CK framework perspective, this vulnerability maps to T1190 - Exploit Public-Facing Application, where attackers leverage application weaknesses to gain unauthorized access, and T1078 - Valid Accounts, as the exploitation requires legitimate administrative credentials but bypasses additional security controls that would normally prevent unauthorized actions.
Organizations affected by this vulnerability should immediately apply the patches released by Apache Tomcat, specifically upgrading to versions 7.0.68, 8.0.31, or 9.0.0.M2, respectively. Additionally, implementing network segmentation to restrict access to the Manager and Host Manager applications, using strong authentication mechanisms, and monitoring for unusual administrative activities can help mitigate the risk. The vulnerability also underscores the importance of regular security updates and proper security configuration practices, as the flaw existed in widely deployed versions of the software and could be exploited by attackers with minimal technical expertise.