CVE-2016-3010 in Connections
Summary
by MITRE
Cross-site scripting (XSS) vulnerability in the Web UI in IBM Connections 4.0 through CR4, 4.5 through CR5, 5.0 before CR4, and 5.5 before CR1 allows remote authenticated users to inject arbitrary web script or HTML via unspecified vectors, a different vulnerability than CVE-2016-2995, CVE-2016-2997, and CVE-2016-3005.
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Analysis
by VulDB Data Team • 04/06/2019
The vulnerability described in CVE-2016-3010 represents a critical cross-site scripting flaw within IBM Connections web interface components. This issue affects multiple versions of the IBM Connections platform including versions 4.0 through CR4, 4.5 through CR5, 5.0 before CR4, and 5.5 before CR1. The vulnerability permits remote authenticated attackers to execute arbitrary web scripts or HTML code within the context of other users' browsers, potentially leading to unauthorized access to sensitive data and system compromise. The flaw specifically resides in the web user interface layer of the IBM Connections platform, making it accessible to users who have already established authentication credentials.
The technical implementation of this XSS vulnerability stems from insufficient input validation and output encoding mechanisms within the web application's user interface components. Attackers can exploit this weakness by crafting malicious payloads that are then executed when other authenticated users view affected pages or interact with the vulnerable functionality. The unspecified vectors mentioned in the description suggest that the vulnerability may manifest through multiple entry points within the web application's interface, potentially including form fields, URL parameters, or dynamic content rendering mechanisms. This broad attack surface increases the likelihood of successful exploitation and makes the vulnerability particularly concerning for enterprise environments where IBM Connections is deployed for collaboration and social networking purposes.
The operational impact of this vulnerability extends beyond simple script injection, as it can enable attackers to perform a wide range of malicious activities including session hijacking, data theft, privilege escalation, and redirection to malicious websites. Since the vulnerability affects authenticated users, attackers can leverage compromised sessions to access sensitive corporate information, modify collaboration content, or gain unauthorized access to other users' profiles and shared resources. The attack requires only authentication credentials, making it particularly dangerous in environments where users maintain persistent sessions or where session management is not properly enforced. This vulnerability directly aligns with CWE-79 which categorizes cross-site scripting flaws, and represents a significant risk to the confidentiality, integrity, and availability of collaboration platforms.
Organizations utilizing affected versions of IBM Connections should implement immediate mitigations including applying the vendor-provided security patches and updates. The mitigation strategy should also include implementing proper input validation, output encoding, and content security policies to prevent malicious script execution. Network segmentation and monitoring solutions should be deployed to detect and prevent exploitation attempts. Additionally, administrators should conduct comprehensive security assessments to identify any other potential vulnerabilities within the IBM Connections environment and ensure proper user access controls are in place. The vulnerability's classification under ATT&CK technique T1531 highlights the importance of defending against privilege escalation through web-based attacks, making proactive security measures essential for protecting enterprise collaboration platforms.