CVE-2016-6801 in Jackrabbit
Summary
by MITRE
Cross-site request forgery (CSRF) vulnerability in the CSRF content-type check in Jackrabbit-Webdav in Apache Jackrabbit 2.4.x before 2.4.6, 2.6.x before 2.6.6, 2.8.x before 2.8.3, 2.10.x before 2.10.4, 2.12.x before 2.12.4, and 2.13.x before 2.13.3 allows remote attackers to hijack the authentication of unspecified victims for requests that create a resource via an HTTP POST request with a (1) missing or (2) crafted Content-Type header.
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Analysis
by VulDB Data Team • 09/24/2024
The CVE-2016-6801 vulnerability represents a critical cross-site request forgery flaw within Apache Jackrabbit's Webdav implementation that undermines the system's ability to properly validate content-type headers during authentication processes. This vulnerability affects multiple versions of the Apache Jackrabbit content repository system, specifically targeting the CSRF protection mechanisms that should prevent unauthorized actions from being executed on behalf of authenticated users. The flaw exists in the way the system handles HTTP POST requests that create resources, creating a pathway for malicious actors to exploit the authentication context of legitimate users through carefully crafted requests that manipulate the Content-Type header field.
The technical implementation of this vulnerability stems from insufficient validation of the Content-Type header in the CSRF protection layer of Jackrabbit's Webdav service. When processing HTTP POST requests to create resources, the system fails to properly enforce content-type checks that would normally ensure requests originate from legitimate sources. Attackers can exploit this weakness by crafting malicious requests that either omit the Content-Type header entirely or provide a crafted header value that bypasses the security validation mechanisms. This allows unauthorized individuals to perform actions such as creating new resources, modifying existing content, or executing administrative functions within the Jackrabbit repository without proper authorization. The vulnerability operates at the HTTP protocol level and leverages the trust relationship between the web application and authenticated users, making it particularly dangerous in environments where users maintain elevated privileges.
The operational impact of this vulnerability extends beyond simple data manipulation to encompass potential full system compromise within affected Apache Jackrabbit deployments. Remote attackers can leverage this CSRF flaw to create malicious resources, potentially leading to data exfiltration, service disruption, or even privilege escalation within the repository environment. The vulnerability affects organizations using Jackrabbit for content management, document storage, or web publishing services where authenticated access is required for resource creation operations. Given that the flaw exists across multiple version branches including 2.4.x, 2.6.x, 2.8.x, 2.10.x, 2.12.x, and 2.13.x, the potential attack surface is extensive across various enterprise deployments. The vulnerability's persistence across multiple release lines indicates a fundamental design flaw in the CSRF protection implementation that requires immediate remediation to prevent unauthorized access to repository resources.
Organizations should prioritize immediate patching of affected Apache Jackrabbit installations to address this vulnerability, as the impact ranges from unauthorized resource creation to potential complete system compromise. The recommended mitigation strategy involves upgrading to patched versions of Apache Jackrabbit, specifically versions 2.4.6, 2.6.6, 2.8.3, 2.10.4, 2.12.4, and 2.13.3 or later. Security teams should also implement additional monitoring for unusual resource creation patterns and Content-Type header variations in web server logs. The vulnerability aligns with CWE-352, which specifically addresses Cross-Site Request Forgery, and represents a classic example of how insufficient input validation can create security weaknesses in web applications. From an ATT&CK framework perspective, this vulnerability maps to techniques involving privilege escalation and persistence through unauthorized resource manipulation, highlighting the importance of proper authentication and authorization controls in content management systems. Organizations should also consider implementing additional web application firewall rules to detect and block suspicious Content-Type header patterns that could indicate exploitation attempts.