CVE-2017-1564 in Rational Quality Manager
Summary
by MITRE
IBM Rational Quality Manager and IBM Rational Collaborative Lifecycle Management 5.0 through 5.0.2 and 6.0 through 6.0.5 are 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: 131764.
If you want to get best quality of vulnerability data, you may have to visit VulDB.
Analysis
by VulDB Data Team • 04/03/2023
The vulnerability identified as CVE-2017-1564 affects IBM Rational Quality Manager and IBM Rational Collaborative Lifecycle Management versions 5.0 through 5.0.2 and 6.0 through 6.0.5, representing a critical cross-site scripting flaw that compromises the integrity of web-based user interfaces. This vulnerability stems from insufficient input validation and output encoding mechanisms within the web application's user interface components, allowing malicious actors to inject malicious JavaScript code through user-controllable input fields or parameters. The flaw specifically manifests when the application fails to properly sanitize user-supplied data before rendering it within web pages, creating an attack surface where crafted payloads can be executed in the context of authenticated user sessions.
The technical exploitation of this vulnerability occurs through the manipulation of web application input points where user data is processed and displayed without adequate sanitization measures. When legitimate users interact with the application's web interface, maliciously crafted JavaScript code can be embedded into input fields, parameters, or other user-controllable elements that are subsequently rendered in the browser. This cross-site scripting vulnerability operates at the application layer and leverages the trust relationship between the user's browser and the web application, enabling attackers to execute scripts in the context of the victim's session. The vulnerability aligns with CWE-79 which categorizes cross-site scripting flaws as weaknesses in web application input validation and output encoding, specifically addressing the failure to properly escape or encode user-supplied data before incorporating it into dynamic web content.
The operational impact of this vulnerability extends beyond simple script execution, as it can potentially lead to complete session hijacking and credential disclosure within trusted sessions. Attackers can leverage the XSS capability to steal session cookies, which when captured through malicious scripts can be used to impersonate legitimate users and gain unauthorized access to sensitive project data, test results, and collaborative environment resources. The vulnerability particularly affects environments where users maintain persistent sessions with elevated privileges, as the malicious scripts can access the full range of application functionality available to the compromised user. This creates a significant risk for organizations utilizing these quality management platforms for critical software development processes, where access to test data, defect tracking information, and collaborative development artifacts could be compromised.
Organizations affected by this vulnerability should implement immediate mitigations including input validation and output encoding enhancements, with particular attention to the web application's user interface components and input handling mechanisms. The recommended approach involves deploying proper HTML escaping and sanitization routines for all user-controllable inputs before rendering them in web pages, ensuring that any JavaScript code is properly encoded or filtered out of user-supplied content. Additionally, implementing content security policies can provide an additional layer of protection by restricting the sources from which scripts can be executed within the application context. Organizations should also consider upgrading to patched versions of the affected IBM Rational products, as IBM has released updates addressing this specific vulnerability. The remediation strategy should align with ATT&CK technique T1059.007 which addresses the execution of malicious code through web application vulnerabilities, emphasizing the need for comprehensive input validation and output encoding practices to prevent such exploitation vectors from being successful.
The broader implications of this vulnerability highlight the critical importance of secure coding practices in enterprise web applications, particularly those handling sensitive development and quality management data. Organizations should conduct comprehensive security assessments of their web applications to identify similar input validation and output encoding weaknesses that could potentially be exploited through various attack vectors. Regular security testing including dynamic application security testing and manual penetration testing should be implemented to identify and remediate such vulnerabilities before they can be exploited by malicious actors. The vulnerability also underscores the necessity of maintaining current security patches and implementing robust application security controls throughout the software development lifecycle to prevent similar cross-site scripting vulnerabilities from occurring in other applications and systems within the organization's infrastructure.