CVE-2016-9701 in Team Concert
Summary
by MITRE
IBM Team Concert 4.0, 5.0 and 6.0 is vulnerable to cross-site scripting. This vulnerability allows users to embed arbitrary JavaScript code in the Web UI thus altering the intended functionality potentially leading to credentials disclosure within a trusted session. IBM X-Force ID: 119529.
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Analysis
by VulDB Data Team • 12/30/2020
The vulnerability identified as CVE-2016-9701 affects IBM Team Concert versions 4.0, 5.0, and 6.0, representing a critical cross-site scripting flaw that undermines the security posture of this collaborative development platform. This vulnerability resides within the web user interface component of the application, creating an attack vector that enables malicious actors to inject arbitrary JavaScript code into the application's interface. The flaw specifically manifests when the application fails to properly sanitize user input before rendering it within web pages, allowing attackers to exploit this weakness through crafted payloads that can be executed in the context of authenticated users' browsers.
The technical nature of this vulnerability aligns with CWE-79, which categorizes cross-site scripting as a code injection flaw occurring when untrusted data is processed and rendered without proper sanitization. Attackers can leverage this vulnerability by submitting malicious JavaScript code through input fields or parameters that are then reflected back to other users within the Team Concert interface. When victims view these maliciously crafted pages, the embedded JavaScript executes in their browser context, potentially enabling session hijacking, credential theft, or other malicious activities. The attack typically requires minimal privileges as it exploits the trust relationship between the user's browser and the application, allowing attackers to operate within the scope of authenticated sessions.
The operational impact of CVE-2016-9701 extends beyond simple data theft, as it can lead to complete compromise of user sessions and potentially broader system access. Since Team Concert is designed for collaborative software development environments, attackers who successfully exploit this vulnerability could gain access to sensitive development artifacts, source code repositories, project data, and authentication credentials. The threat is particularly concerning in enterprise environments where Team Concert serves as a central collaboration platform for development teams, as a successful attack could provide attackers with persistent access to critical development infrastructure. Additionally, the vulnerability could be exploited to manipulate project timelines, alter code reviews, or inject malicious code into development workflows, creating both immediate security risks and long-term operational disruptions.
Organizations affected by this vulnerability should implement immediate mitigations including input validation and output encoding measures to prevent JavaScript injection attacks. The recommended approach involves implementing proper sanitization of all user-supplied data before rendering it within the web interface, utilizing Content Security Policy headers to restrict script execution, and ensuring that all versions of IBM Team Concert are updated to patched releases. Security teams should also consider implementing web application firewalls to monitor and block suspicious requests, conduct comprehensive security assessments of the application's input handling mechanisms, and establish monitoring procedures to detect potential exploitation attempts. Organizations should also review their incident response procedures to ensure readiness for potential credential theft or session hijacking scenarios that could result from this vulnerability. The ATT&CK framework categorizes this vulnerability under the 'Command and Control' and 'Credential Access' domains, emphasizing the potential for attackers to establish persistent access and extract sensitive information from compromised user sessions.