CVE-2015-5651 in DotClear
Summary
by MITRE
Cross-site scripting (XSS) vulnerability in Dotclear before 2.8.1 allows remote attackers to inject arbitrary web script or HTML via unspecified vectors.
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Analysis
by VulDB Data Team • 01/18/2018
The CVE-2015-5651 vulnerability represents a critical cross-site scripting flaw discovered in the Dotclear content management system prior to version 2.8.1. This vulnerability falls under the CWE-79 category, which specifically addresses cross-site scripting attacks where malicious scripts can be injected into web applications. The vulnerability enables remote attackers to execute arbitrary web scripts or HTML code within the context of other users' browsers, potentially leading to unauthorized access, data theft, or session hijacking. Dotclear is a lightweight, open-source blogging platform that has been widely adopted by content creators and organizations requiring simple yet effective web publishing capabilities. The vulnerability exists in the application's handling of user input across unspecified vectors, making it particularly dangerous as attackers can exploit various entry points to inject malicious payloads.
The technical exploitation of this vulnerability occurs when unvalidated user input is processed and rendered back to users without proper sanitization or encoding mechanisms. Attackers can craft malicious payloads that, when executed, can steal cookies, session tokens, or other sensitive information from authenticated users. The vulnerability's impact extends beyond simple script injection as it can enable more sophisticated attacks such as credential theft, defacement of web content, or redirection to malicious sites. The unspecified vectors suggest that the flaw may exist across multiple input points within the application, including but not limited to comment forms, user profile fields, or administrative interfaces. This broad attack surface increases the likelihood of successful exploitation and makes the vulnerability particularly challenging to secure against without proper input validation measures.
The operational impact of CVE-2015-5651 is significant for organizations using vulnerable versions of Dotclear, as it creates potential entry points for attackers to compromise user sessions and gain unauthorized access to sensitive data. The vulnerability can be exploited by attackers who do not require any special privileges or access credentials to the system, making it particularly dangerous for public-facing web applications. Organizations may experience data breaches, content manipulation, or unauthorized modifications to their web properties, which can result in reputational damage, regulatory compliance issues, and potential legal consequences. The attack vector allows for persistent malicious code execution, meaning that once a user interacts with the vulnerable application, the injected scripts can continue to execute and potentially maintain access to the compromised system.
Mitigation strategies for this vulnerability primarily focus on upgrading to Dotclear version 2.8.1 or later, which includes proper input validation and sanitization measures to prevent XSS attacks. Organizations should implement comprehensive input validation across all user-facing application components, ensuring that all user-supplied data is properly encoded before being rendered in web pages. The implementation of Content Security Policy headers can provide additional protection against XSS attacks by restricting the sources from which scripts can be loaded. Security measures should also include regular security audits, input sanitization libraries, and proper output encoding practices. Organizations using older versions of Dotclear should also consider implementing web application firewalls and monitoring systems to detect and prevent exploitation attempts. According to ATT&CK framework, this vulnerability maps to technique T1059.001 for command and scripting interpreter, specifically through the use of web-based scripting languages that can be injected into vulnerable applications, making it a critical target for defensive security measures and incident response protocols.