CVE-2017-6484 in INTER-Mediator
Summary
by MITRE
Multiple Cross-Site Scripting (XSS) issues were discovered in INTER-Mediator 5.5. The vulnerabilities exist due to insufficient filtration of user-supplied data (c and cred) passed to the "INTER-Mediator-master/Auth_Support/PasswordReset/resetpassword.php" URL. An attacker could execute arbitrary HTML and script code in a browser in the context of the vulnerable website.
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Analysis
by VulDB Data Team • 09/04/2020
The vulnerability identified as CVE-2017-6484 represents a critical cross-site scripting flaw within INTER-Mediator version 5.5, specifically affecting the authentication support module. This vulnerability resides in the password reset functionality at the path AUTH_Support/PasswordReset/resetpassword.php, where the application fails to properly sanitize user input parameters. The affected parameters include 'c' and 'cred' which are passed directly to the vulnerable endpoint without adequate validation or encoding mechanisms. This oversight creates a persistent security gap that allows malicious actors to inject malicious scripts into the application's response, potentially compromising user sessions and data integrity.
The technical exploitation of this vulnerability occurs through the manipulation of the 'c' and 'cred' parameters in the URL request to the resetpassword.php endpoint. When these parameters contain malicious script code, the application processes them without sufficient sanitization, allowing the injected code to execute within the browser context of legitimate users. This type of vulnerability falls under CWE-79 which specifically addresses Cross-Site Scripting flaws, where the application fails to validate or encode user-supplied data before incorporating it into dynamically generated web content. The vulnerability enables attackers to perform session hijacking, deface web applications, or redirect users to malicious sites, fundamentally undermining the security of the authentication system.
The operational impact of this vulnerability extends beyond simple script execution, creating significant risks for organizations relying on INTER-Mediator for web application development. Attackers can leverage this flaw to steal user credentials, manipulate authentication flows, or establish persistent access points within the application ecosystem. The vulnerability affects the core authentication mechanism, potentially allowing unauthorized access to protected resources and user accounts. This represents a serious threat to application security, particularly in environments where the application handles sensitive user data or serves as a gateway to enterprise systems. The flaw's persistence across multiple XSS vectors within the authentication module suggests a systemic issue in input validation practices throughout the application's security architecture.
Mitigation strategies for CVE-2017-6484 require immediate implementation of proper input validation and output encoding mechanisms within the INTER-Mediator framework. Organizations should implement strict parameter validation for all user-supplied inputs, particularly within authentication endpoints, and ensure that all dynamic content generation properly encodes output to prevent script execution. The fix should include implementing Content Security Policy headers to limit script execution contexts, employing proper HTML encoding for all dynamic content, and applying regular security patches to the INTER-Mediator framework. Additionally, organizations should conduct comprehensive security testing of all authentication modules to identify similar vulnerabilities, implement web application firewalls to detect and block malicious requests, and establish secure coding practices that align with OWASP Top Ten recommendations. This vulnerability demonstrates the critical importance of input validation in authentication systems and aligns with ATT&CK technique T1078 which covers valid accounts and credential access through exploitation of authentication mechanisms.