CVE-2017-1516 in Doors Web Access
Summary
by MITRE
IBM Doors Web Access 9.5 and 9.6 could allow a remote attacker to hijack the clicking action of the victim. By persuading a victim to visit a malicious Web site, a remote attacker could exploit this vulnerability to hijack the victim's click actions and possibly launch further attacks against the victim. IBM X-Force ID: 129826.
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Analysis
by VulDB Data Team • 02/05/2025
This vulnerability in IBM Doors Web Access versions 9.5 and 9.6 represents a significant client-side attack vector that enables remote code execution through click hijacking techniques. The flaw allows attackers to manipulate user interactions by intercepting and redirecting click events that occur within the web application interface. This type of vulnerability falls under the category of cross-site scripting attacks and session manipulation, where the malicious actor can effectively take control of user actions without direct system compromise.
The technical implementation of this vulnerability exploits the web application's event handling mechanisms, specifically targeting the way mouse click events are processed and dispatched within the browser environment. Attackers can craft malicious web pages that leverage JavaScript to capture user click actions and redirect them to predetermined targets, effectively creating a man-in-the-browser scenario. This vulnerability is particularly dangerous because it operates at the user interaction level rather than the application server level, making it difficult to detect through traditional network monitoring approaches.
The operational impact of this vulnerability extends beyond simple session hijacking to potentially enable more sophisticated attack chains. Once an attacker successfully hijacks click actions, they can initiate further malicious activities including form submissions, navigation to malicious sites, or even data exfiltration through manipulated user interactions. This vulnerability directly relates to CWE-74 and CWE-79 which address injection flaws and cross-site scripting respectively, while also mapping to ATT&CK technique T1059 for command and scripting interpreter and T1531 for credential access through manipulation of authentication tokens.
Organizations utilizing IBM Doors Web Access should implement immediate mitigations including browser security updates, implementation of content security policies, and user education regarding suspicious web content. Network administrators should consider deploying web application firewalls to detect and prevent malicious click hijacking attempts. The vulnerability also highlights the importance of keeping web applications updated with the latest security patches from IBM, as this specific flaw was addressed in subsequent releases of the software. Additionally, organizations should conduct regular security assessments to identify similar client-side vulnerabilities that could be exploited through similar attack vectors.