CVE-2016-1305 in Application Policy Infrastructure Controller Enterprise Module
Summary
by MITRE
Cross-site scripting (XSS) vulnerability in Cisco Application Policy Infrastructure Controller Enterprise Module (APIC-EM) 1.1 allows remote attackers to inject arbitrary web script or HTML via vectors involving HTML entities, aka Bug ID CSCux15511.
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Analysis
by VulDB Data Team • 07/07/2022
The vulnerability identified as CVE-2016-1305 represents a critical cross-site scripting flaw within Cisco's Application Policy Infrastructure Controller Enterprise Module version 1.1. This security weakness resides in the web-based management interface of the APIC-EM system, which serves as a central policy management platform for network infrastructure. The vulnerability specifically affects the handling of HTML entities within user input fields, creating an avenue for malicious actors to execute arbitrary web scripts or HTML code within the context of authenticated user sessions. The issue was catalogued under Cisco Bug ID CSCux15511, indicating its classification within the company's internal tracking system for security defects.
The technical nature of this vulnerability stems from insufficient input validation and output encoding mechanisms within the APIC-EM web interface. When users interact with the system through web forms or parameter inputs, the application fails to properly sanitize or encode HTML entities that are submitted by remote attackers. This allows malicious actors to inject script code that gets executed in the browser context of legitimate users who view the affected content. The vulnerability operates at the application layer and leverages the trust relationship between the web application and its users, making it particularly dangerous as it can be exploited without requiring additional authentication beyond initial access to the vulnerable system.
The operational impact of this XSS vulnerability extends beyond simple script injection, as it can enable attackers to perform a wide range of malicious activities within the compromised environment. An attacker could potentially steal session cookies, redirect users to malicious websites, modify content displayed to other users, or even escalate privileges within the APIC-EM system. Given that APIC-EM serves as a central policy controller for network infrastructure, successful exploitation could lead to broader network compromise, unauthorized access to network policies, or disruption of critical network services. The vulnerability affects the integrity and confidentiality of the system, as it allows unauthorized code execution in the context of authenticated users, potentially leading to complete system compromise.
Security practitioners should implement multiple layers of defense to mitigate this vulnerability, beginning with immediate patching of affected systems to the latest available software versions from Cisco. Network segmentation and monitoring of web traffic can help detect potential exploitation attempts, while implementing proper input validation and output encoding mechanisms within the application code can prevent similar issues in the future. The vulnerability aligns with CWE-79, which categorizes cross-site scripting flaws as a fundamental weakness in web application security, and maps to ATT&CK technique T1059.007 for scripting languages, specifically targeting web-based attack surfaces. Organizations should also consider implementing web application firewalls and content security policies to provide additional protection against such injection-based attacks, while maintaining regular security assessments to identify and remediate similar vulnerabilities across their network infrastructure.