CVE-2016-2888 in Jazz Reporting Service
Summary
by MITRE
Cross-site scripting (XSS) vulnerability in the Report Builder and Data Collection Component (DCC) in IBM Jazz Reporting Service (JRS) 5.x before 5.0.2 ifix016 and 6.x before 6.0.1 ifix005 allows remote authenticated users to inject arbitrary web script or HTML via a crafted URL, a different vulnerability than CVE-2016-0313 and CVE-2016-0350.
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Analysis
by VulDB Data Team • 02/18/2019
The vulnerability identified as CVE-2016-2888 represents a cross-site scripting flaw within IBM Jazz Reporting Service's Report Builder and Data Collection Component functionality. This security weakness affects versions 5.x prior to 5.0.2 ifix016 and 6.x prior to 6.0.1 ifix005, making numerous deployments susceptible to malicious web script injection attacks. The vulnerability specifically enables authenticated remote attackers to exploit URL parameters and inject arbitrary HTML or JavaScript code, creating a significant vector for malicious activity within the reporting environment. Unlike related vulnerabilities such as CVE-2016-0313 and CVE-2016-0350, this flaw operates through distinct attack vectors while maintaining the same core security implications for affected systems.
The technical implementation of this vulnerability stems from inadequate input validation and output encoding within the DCC component of IBM Jazz Reporting Service. When users navigate to specially crafted URLs containing malicious payloads, the system fails to properly sanitize or escape the input parameters before rendering them in web responses. This insufficient sanitization allows attackers to inject script code that executes within the context of other users' browsers, potentially enabling session hijacking, data theft, or further exploitation of the compromised environment. The vulnerability operates at the application layer and specifically targets the web interface components that handle user-generated content and report parameters, making it particularly dangerous in collaborative reporting environments where multiple users access shared dashboards and reports.
The operational impact of CVE-2016-2888 extends beyond simple script injection, creating potential for significant security breaches within organizations utilizing IBM Jazz Reporting Service. Authenticated attackers can leverage this vulnerability to execute malicious code in the browsers of other users who access affected reports, potentially leading to credential theft, unauthorized data access, or privilege escalation within the reporting system. The vulnerability's persistence across multiple versions of the software means that organizations maintaining older installations face ongoing risk, while the authenticated nature of the attack requires attackers to first obtain valid credentials, making the threat more targeted but still potentially devastating. Organizations with extensive reporting environments using the affected components face elevated risk of data compromise and unauthorized access to sensitive business intelligence.
Organizations should implement immediate mitigation strategies including applying the vendor-provided patches and fixes for IBM Jazz Reporting Service versions 5.0.2 ifix016 and 6.0.1 ifix005 to address the vulnerability. Network segmentation and access controls should be reviewed to limit exposure of the affected components to only authorized personnel. Input validation should be strengthened across all user-facing interfaces, particularly those handling URL parameters and report configurations. Security monitoring should include detection of suspicious URL patterns and script injection attempts within web traffic logs. The vulnerability aligns with CWE-79 which classifies cross-site scripting flaws as a critical security weakness requiring comprehensive input sanitization and output encoding practices. From an ATT&CK framework perspective, this vulnerability maps to techniques involving command and control communication, credential access, and privilege escalation through web-based attacks, making it a significant concern for enterprise security operations and incident response teams.