CVE-2017-20158 in Yii2 FileAPI Widget
Summary
by MITRE • 12/31/2022
** UNSUPPPORTED WHEN ASSIGNED **** UNSUPPORTED WHEN ASSIGNED ** A vulnerability was found in vova07 Yii2 FileAPI Widget up to 0.1.8. It has been declared as problematic. Affected by this vulnerability is the function run of the file actions/UploadAction.php. The manipulation of the argument file leads to cross site scripting. The attack can be launched remotely. Upgrading to version 0.1.9 is able to address this issue. The name of the patch is c00d1e4fc912257fca1fce66d7a163bdbb4c8222. It is recommended to upgrade the affected component. The identifier VDB-217141 was assigned to this vulnerability. NOTE: This vulnerability only affects products that are no longer supported by the maintainer.
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Analysis
by VulDB Data Team • 04/28/2025
The vulnerability identified as CVE-2017-20158 resides within the vova07 Yii2 FileAPI Widget, specifically affecting versions up to 0.1.8. This widget serves as a file upload component for the Yii2 web application framework, facilitating user file uploads through javascript interfaces. The vulnerability manifests in the run function of the actions/UploadAction.php file, which processes file upload operations and handles the file argument parameter. The security flaw represents a cross-site scripting vulnerability that allows malicious actors to inject malicious scripts into the application's file upload functionality. This type of vulnerability falls under CWE-79 which categorizes cross-site scripting flaws as a critical weakness in web applications. The vulnerability is particularly concerning as it enables remote code execution through crafted file uploads, making it a significant threat to web application security.
The technical exploitation of this vulnerability occurs when an attacker manipulates the file argument parameter passed to the run function in UploadAction.php. This manipulation allows the injection of malicious javascript code that gets executed in the context of other users who view the uploaded files. The attack vector is remote, meaning that an attacker can exploit this vulnerability without requiring physical access to the target system. The vulnerability specifically affects the file upload processing logic where user-supplied file names or metadata are not properly sanitized or validated before being rendered in the web interface. This lack of input validation creates an opening for attackers to inject malicious payloads that can execute in the browser context of other users, potentially leading to session hijacking, data theft, or further compromise of the affected web application.
The operational impact of this vulnerability extends beyond simple script injection, as it can lead to complete compromise of the affected web application and its users. When an attacker successfully exploits this vulnerability, they can execute arbitrary javascript code in the browser context of authenticated users, potentially accessing sensitive data, modifying application behavior, or redirecting users to malicious sites. The vulnerability affects applications using the Yii2 framework that implement the FileAPI widget for file upload functionality, making it a widespread concern for developers who rely on this component. The vulnerability's remote exploitation capability means that attackers can target applications from anywhere on the internet, making it particularly dangerous for publicly accessible web applications. This vulnerability demonstrates the critical importance of input validation and output encoding in web applications, as proper sanitization of user-supplied data could have prevented the XSS condition from occurring.
Mitigation strategies for this vulnerability center around immediate upgrading to version 0.1.9 of the vova07 Yii2 FileAPI Widget, which contains the fix identified by the patch identifier c00d1e4fc912257fca1fce66d7a163bdbb4c8222. This upgrade addresses the core issue by implementing proper input validation and sanitization of file parameters before they are processed or rendered in the application interface. Organizations should also implement additional security measures such as content security policies to limit the execution of unauthorized scripts, input validation at multiple layers of the application, and regular security audits of third-party components. The vulnerability serves as a reminder of the importance of maintaining up-to-date dependencies and the risks associated with using unsupported software components. Given that this vulnerability affects products no longer supported by maintainers, organizations should consider migrating to actively maintained alternatives and implementing more robust security monitoring to detect similar issues in legacy systems. The ATT&CK framework categorizes this vulnerability under the T1059.007 technique for script injection, highlighting the need for comprehensive defensive measures against such attack vectors in web applications.