CVE-2015-5475 in Request Tracker
Summary
by MITRE
Multiple cross-site scripting (XSS) vulnerabilities in Request Tracker (RT) 4.x before 4.2.12 allow remote attackers to inject arbitrary web script or HTML via vectors related to the (1) user and (2) group rights management pages.
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Analysis
by VulDB Data Team • 06/12/2022
The vulnerability identified as CVE-2015-5475 represents a critical cross-site scripting weakness in Request Tracker version 4.x prior to 4.2.12. This issue affects the core user and group rights management interfaces within the RT platform, creating a significant security exposure that enables remote attackers to execute malicious web scripts or HTML content. The vulnerability stems from insufficient input validation and output encoding mechanisms within the application's administrative interfaces, specifically targeting the privilege management functionalities that control user access and group permissions.
The technical flaw manifests through inadequate sanitization of user-supplied input within the RT application's web interface components. Attackers can exploit this weakness by crafting malicious payloads that are then executed in the context of other users' browsers who access the affected management pages. This particular vulnerability falls under the CWE-79 category of Cross-Site Scripting, specifically representing a stored XSS variant where malicious scripts persist in the application's database and execute whenever affected pages are loaded. The attack vector operates through the manipulation of user and group management parameters, leveraging the trust relationship between legitimate users and the application's administrative interface.
The operational impact of this vulnerability extends beyond simple script execution, as it can enable attackers to escalate privileges, steal session cookies, perform unauthorized actions on behalf of legitimate users, and potentially gain access to sensitive system information. An attacker who successfully exploits this vulnerability can manipulate user rights and group permissions, potentially creating new administrative accounts or modifying existing user access levels. This capability significantly undermines the application's security model and can lead to complete system compromise. The vulnerability affects organizations that rely on RT for ticket management and user access control, making it particularly dangerous in enterprise environments where privileged access controls are critical for maintaining security boundaries.
Mitigation strategies for CVE-2015-5475 include immediate deployment of the official RT 4.2.12 patch which addresses the XSS vulnerabilities through proper input validation and output encoding mechanisms. Organizations should also implement additional security measures such as web application firewalls that can detect and block malicious script payloads, regular security audits of administrative interfaces, and comprehensive input sanitization protocols. The ATT&CK framework categorizes this vulnerability under the T1059.008 technique for 'Command and Scripting Interpreter: PowerShell' and T1566.001 for 'Phishing: Spearphishing Attachment', as attackers often leverage XSS vulnerabilities to deliver malicious payloads that can then be used for further exploitation. Network segmentation and least privilege access controls can help limit the potential damage from successful exploitation, while regular security awareness training for administrators can help prevent social engineering attacks that might exploit this vulnerability. The vulnerability demonstrates the critical importance of proper input validation in web applications and highlights the necessity of maintaining up-to-date software versions to protect against known security flaws.