CVE-2017-5532 in JasperReports Server
Summary
by MITRE
A vulnerability in the report renderer component of TIBCO JasperReports Server, TIBCO JasperReports Server Community Edition, TIBCO JasperReports Server for ActiveMatrix BPM, TIBCO JasperReports Library, TIBCO JasperReports Library for ActiveMatrix BPM, TIBCO Jaspersoft for AWS with Multi-Tenancy, TIBCO Jaspersoft Reporting and Analytics for AWS, TIBCO Jaspersoft Studio, and TIBCO Jaspersoft Studio for ActiveMatrix BPM may allow a subset of authorized users to perform persistent cross-site scripting (XSS) attacks. Affected releases are TIBCO JasperReports Server 6.2.3 and below; 6.3.0; 6.3.1; 6.3.2; 6.4.0, TIBCO JasperReports Server Community Edition 6.4.0 and below, TIBCO JasperReports Server for ActiveMatrix BPM 6.4.0 and below, TIBCO JasperReports Library 6.2.3 and below; 6.3.0; 6.3.1; 6.3.2; 6.4.0; 6.4.1, TIBCO JasperReports Library for ActiveMatrix BPM 6.4.1 and below, TIBCO Jaspersoft for AWS with Multi-Tenancy 6.4.0 and below, TIBCO Jaspersoft Reporting and Analytics for AWS 6.4.0 and below, TIBCO Jaspersoft Studio 6.2.3 and below; 6.3.0; 6.3.1; 6.3.2; 6.4.0, and TIBCO Jaspersoft Studio for ActiveMatrix BPM 6.4.0 and below.
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Analysis
by VulDB Data Team • 01/10/2023
The vulnerability identified as CVE-2017-5532 represents a critical persistent cross-site scripting flaw within the report renderer component of multiple TIBCO JasperReports products. This vulnerability affects a broad ecosystem of reporting and analytics platforms including server editions, community versions, and studio applications across various TIBCO Jaspersoft products. The flaw specifically resides in how the system processes and renders report content, creating an avenue for malicious actors to inject persistent XSS payloads that can affect users interacting with vulnerable reports.
The technical nature of this vulnerability stems from insufficient input validation and output encoding within the report rendering engine. When authorized users access reports containing maliciously crafted input data, the system fails to properly sanitize the content before rendering it in the browser context. This allows attackers who have access to create or modify reports to inject malicious JavaScript code that persists in the report data itself. The vulnerability is particularly concerning because it operates within the context of authenticated users, meaning that attackers need only gain access to report creation or modification capabilities to exploit this flaw.
From an operational impact perspective, this vulnerability enables attackers to execute arbitrary JavaScript code in the browsers of other users who view the compromised reports. This persistent nature means that the malicious code executes every time the report is rendered, potentially allowing for session hijacking, credential theft, or redirection to malicious sites. The attack surface is broad given the multiple affected products and versions, making it particularly dangerous for organizations using TIBCO JasperReports solutions. The vulnerability aligns with CWE-79, which specifically addresses cross-site scripting flaws, and represents a direct violation of secure coding practices that require proper input sanitization and output encoding.
The exploitation of this vulnerability follows ATT&CK framework techniques categorized under persistent XSS attacks and credential access. Attackers can leverage this flaw to establish persistent footholds within environments where these reporting tools are deployed, potentially leading to broader compromise of the affected systems. Organizations using these vulnerable versions face significant risk as the attack requires minimal privileges beyond report creation access, making it particularly dangerous in environments where multiple users have report modification capabilities.
Mitigation strategies should focus on immediate patching of all affected versions, with particular attention to the specific version ranges mentioned in the vulnerability description. Organizations should implement strict input validation policies for report data entry points and consider implementing content security policies to limit the execution of unauthorized scripts. Additionally, privileged access controls should be reviewed to ensure that only necessary users have report creation or modification capabilities. The recommended approach includes upgrading to patched versions of all affected TIBCO JasperReports products, implementing web application firewalls to detect and block malicious payloads, and conducting comprehensive security assessments of report rendering processes. Organizations should also consider implementing regular security training for users who interact with report creation tools to prevent accidental exploitation through social engineering or privilege escalation attacks.