CVE-2017-1248 in Quality Manager
Summary
by MITRE
IBM Quality Manager (RQM) 5.0.x and 6.0 through 6.0.5 are vulnerable to HTML injection. A remote attacker could inject malicious HTML code, which when viewed, would be executed in the victim's Web browser within the security context of the hosting site. IBM X-Force ID: 124628.
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Analysis
by VulDB Data Team • 04/03/2023
IBM Quality Manager versions 5.0.x and 6.0 through 6.0.5 contain a critical html injection vulnerability that allows remote attackers to execute malicious code within the security context of the hosting web application. This vulnerability falls under the CWE-79 category of Cross-Site Scripting (XSS) and represents a significant security risk to organizations using these specific versions of the quality management platform. The flaw occurs when the application fails to properly sanitize user input before rendering it in web pages, creating an opportunity for attackers to inject malicious html content that executes in victims' browsers. The vulnerability is particularly dangerous because it enables attackers to perform actions such as stealing session cookies, defacing web pages, redirecting users to malicious sites, or executing arbitrary javascript code within the context of the authenticated user's session. This type of attack aligns with the ATT&CK technique T1059.007 for command and scripting interpreter and T1566 for credential access through social engineering. The impact of this vulnerability extends beyond simple data theft as it can lead to complete compromise of user sessions and potential lateral movement within the organization's network. Attackers can exploit this weakness by crafting malicious input that gets stored and subsequently rendered without proper sanitization, making the attack persistent and potentially affecting multiple users who view the compromised content. Organizations using these vulnerable versions face significant risk of unauthorized access and data breaches, particularly in environments where quality management systems handle sensitive business information and user credentials. The vulnerability represents a critical weakness in the application's input validation and output encoding mechanisms, highlighting the importance of proper web application security controls.
The technical implementation of this html injection vulnerability demonstrates a failure in the application's security architecture to properly filter and escape user-supplied data before rendering it in web contexts. When users submit data through the IBM Quality Manager interface, the application should validate and sanitize all input to prevent malicious code from being executed. However, in the affected versions, this sanitization process is insufficient, allowing attackers to inject html tags, javascript code, or other malicious content that gets executed when other users view the affected pages. The vulnerability specifically affects the web interface components where user-generated content is displayed, making it particularly dangerous for collaborative environments where multiple users interact with shared quality management data. This weakness enables attackers to create persistent threats that can compromise user sessions and potentially escalate privileges within the application. The security implications extend to potential data exfiltration, session hijacking, and the ability to manipulate quality management data. Organizations should note that the vulnerability affects both major version lines of IBM Quality Manager, indicating a fundamental flaw in the application's security design rather than a simple patchable issue.
Mitigation strategies for this vulnerability require immediate action including applying the vendor-provided security patches and updates for IBM Quality Manager versions 5.0.x and 6.0 through 6.0.5. Organizations should implement comprehensive input validation and output encoding mechanisms to prevent html injection attacks, ensuring that all user-supplied content is properly sanitized before being rendered in web pages. Security teams should deploy web application firewalls and content security policies to detect and prevent malicious html injection attempts. Additionally, implementing proper access controls and monitoring user activities within the quality management system can help detect potential exploitation attempts. The remediation process should include thorough testing of the patched versions to ensure no regression issues are introduced while maintaining the application's functionality. Organizations should also consider implementing regular security assessments and penetration testing to identify similar vulnerabilities in other applications within their environment. The vulnerability serves as a reminder of the critical importance of maintaining up-to-date security patches and implementing robust input validation controls. Network segmentation and user access controls can provide additional layers of protection, while security awareness training for users can help prevent social engineering attacks that might exploit this vulnerability. The incident underscores the necessity of following security best practices such as the OWASP Top Ten guidelines and implementing defense-in-depth strategies to protect against html injection and similar web application vulnerabilities.