CVE-2016-0386 in TRIRIGA Application Platform
Summary
by MITRE
Cross-site request forgery (CSRF) vulnerability in IBM TRIRIGA Application Platform 3.3 before 3.3.2.6, 3.4 before 3.4.2.4, and 3.5 before 3.5.0.2 allows remote authenticated users to hijack the authentication of administrators for requests that delete employees.
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Analysis
by VulDB Data Team • 02/15/2019
The CVE-2016-0386 vulnerability represents a critical cross-site request forgery flaw within IBM TRIRIGA Application Platform versions prior to specific patch releases. This vulnerability specifically affects versions 3.3 before 3.3.2.6, 3.4 before 3.4.2.4, and 3.5 before 3.5.0.2, creating a significant security risk for organizations utilizing this enterprise application platform. The flaw enables authenticated attackers to manipulate the platform's authentication mechanisms and execute unauthorized administrative actions. The vulnerability operates by exploiting the absence of proper anti-CSRF protection measures in the application's request handling processes, allowing malicious actors to craft forged requests that appear legitimate to the system's authentication layer.
The technical implementation of this CSRF vulnerability stems from the platform's failure to validate the origin of requests or implement proper token-based authentication mechanisms for critical administrative operations. When authenticated users navigate to maliciously crafted web pages or click on compromised links, the application processes requests without verifying that they originated from legitimate sources within the authenticated session. This weakness particularly affects the deletion of employee records, which represents a high-impact administrative function that could result in data loss, unauthorized access to sensitive employee information, or disruption of business operations. The vulnerability aligns with CWE-352, which specifically addresses Cross-Site Request Forgery weaknesses in software applications, and demonstrates how insufficient input validation and session management can lead to privilege escalation scenarios.
The operational impact of this vulnerability extends beyond simple data manipulation, as it provides attackers with the capability to perform administrative actions that could compromise entire organizational data integrity. An attacker with access to an authenticated user session could potentially delete employee records, modify access permissions, or perform other destructive operations that would require significant recovery efforts. The attack vector typically involves social engineering techniques where users are tricked into visiting malicious websites or clicking on compromised links that automatically submit requests to the vulnerable TRIRIGA platform. This vulnerability particularly affects organizations that rely heavily on employee data management and administrative controls, as it could lead to unauthorized data deletion, compliance violations, and potential regulatory penalties. The risk is amplified by the fact that the vulnerability targets administrator-level functions, meaning that successful exploitation could result in complete compromise of the platform's administrative capabilities.
Organizations should implement immediate mitigations including applying the vendor-provided patches for all affected versions of IBM TRIRIGA Application Platform, as well as implementing additional security controls such as implementing proper CSRF token validation mechanisms, enforcing strict session management policies, and conducting regular security assessments of web applications. The mitigation strategy should also include network-level protections such as implementing web application firewalls and monitoring for suspicious authentication-related activities. Security teams should also consider implementing user education programs to reduce the risk of successful social engineering attacks that could exploit this vulnerability. The vulnerability demonstrates the importance of maintaining up-to-date security patches and implementing defense-in-depth strategies that protect against multiple attack vectors simultaneously. Organizations should also conduct regular vulnerability assessments and penetration testing to identify similar weaknesses in their application environments and ensure compliance with security standards such as those outlined in the NIST Cybersecurity Framework and ISO/IEC 27001 requirements for information security management.