CVE-2017-12347 in Data Center Network Manager
Summary
by MITRE
Multiple vulnerabilities in Cisco Data Center Network Manager (DCNM) Software could allow a remote attacker to inject arbitrary values into DCNM configuration parameters, redirect a user to a malicious website, inject malicious content into a DCNM client interface, or conduct a cross-site scripting (XSS) attack against a user of the affected software. Cisco Bug IDs: CSCvf40477, CSCvf63150, CSCvf68218, CSCvf68235, CSCvf68247.
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Analysis
by VulDB Data Team • 01/25/2021
Cisco Data Center Network Manager software contains multiple cross-site scripting vulnerabilities that enable remote attackers to manipulate configuration parameters and inject malicious content into client interfaces. These vulnerabilities affect the web-based management interface of DCNM software, which is commonly used to manage and monitor data center network infrastructure. The identified issues stem from insufficient input validation and output encoding mechanisms within the application's user interface components. Attackers can exploit these flaws by crafting malicious payloads that are executed within the context of a victim's browser session, potentially leading to unauthorized access to sensitive network management functions.
The technical implementation of these vulnerabilities involves the improper handling of user-supplied input in various web interface components of DCNM. Specifically, the software fails to adequately sanitize and validate parameters passed through HTTP requests, allowing malicious input to be processed and rendered without proper escaping or encoding. This creates opportunities for attackers to inject HTML, JavaScript, or other malicious code that executes in the victim's browser context. The vulnerabilities are particularly concerning because they affect the core management interface that administrators use to configure and monitor critical network infrastructure components.
The operational impact of these vulnerabilities extends beyond simple XSS attacks to potentially compromise the entire data center network management system. An attacker who successfully exploits these flaws could redirect users to malicious websites, steal session cookies, or gain unauthorized access to network configuration data. The vulnerabilities affect multiple components within DCNM including configuration parameter handling, user interface rendering, and client-side script execution. This could result in unauthorized network modifications, data exfiltration, or complete compromise of the network management system's integrity and availability.
Mitigation strategies for these vulnerabilities should include immediate deployment of Cisco's security patches and updates, which address the specific input validation and output encoding issues. Network administrators should also implement strict input validation policies and ensure that all user-supplied data is properly sanitized before processing. The implementation of web application firewalls and content security policies can provide additional protection layers against exploitation attempts. Organizations should conduct comprehensive security assessments of their DCNM deployments and review access controls to limit exposure. These vulnerabilities align with CWE-79 Cross-site Scripting and are consistent with ATT&CK techniques for web application attacks, particularly those involving client-side code injection and session manipulation.