CVE-2018-11348 in YunoHost
Summary
by MITRE
Two XSS vulnerabilities are located in the profile edition page of the user panel of the YunoHost 2.7.2 through 2.7.14 web application. By injecting a JavaScript payload, these flaws could be used to manipulate a user's session.
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Analysis
by VulDB Data Team • 04/17/2020
The vulnerability CVE-2018-11348 represents a critical cross-site scripting weakness discovered in the YunoHost web application platform affecting versions 2.7.2 through 2.7.14. This security flaw exists within the user profile editing functionality, specifically in the user panel's profile edition page where input validation mechanisms fail to properly sanitize user-supplied data. The vulnerability manifests when users attempt to modify their profile information, creating an opportunity for attackers to inject malicious javascript code that executes in the context of other users' browsers. The flaw stems from insufficient output encoding and input validation practices that allow malicious payloads to persist and execute without proper sanitization.
The technical nature of this vulnerability places it squarely within the CWE-79 category of Cross-Site Scripting, specifically representing a reflected XSS variant that occurs in the user profile management interface. Attackers can exploit this weakness by crafting malicious javascript payloads that target the profile editing page, which then gets executed when other users view the compromised profile or when the page is rendered in different contexts. The vulnerability's impact is particularly severe because it operates within a privileged user context, potentially allowing attackers to hijack user sessions and gain unauthorized access to sensitive personal information. This type of attack aligns with ATT&CK technique T1531 which focuses on use of malicious code to manipulate session tokens and maintain persistent access to user accounts.
The operational implications of this vulnerability extend beyond simple data theft, as it provides attackers with the capability to perform session hijacking and maintain long-term access to compromised user accounts. When users edit their profiles and the malicious code executes, it can capture session cookies, redirect users to malicious sites, or inject additional malicious content that can compromise the entire user experience. The vulnerability affects the integrity and confidentiality of user data within the YunoHost platform, potentially exposing personal information, communication data, and system access credentials. Organizations relying on YunoHost for hosting services face significant risk of unauthorized access to user accounts, with potential cascading effects throughout the system's user base.
Mitigation strategies for CVE-2018-11348 require immediate implementation of proper input validation and output encoding mechanisms within the user profile editing functionality. System administrators should upgrade to YunoHost versions 2.7.15 or later where the vulnerability has been patched through enhanced sanitization of user inputs and proper HTML encoding of output data. Additional protective measures include implementing content security policies to prevent unauthorized script execution, deploying web application firewalls to detect and block malicious payloads, and conducting regular security audits of user input handling mechanisms. Organizations should also consider implementing multi-factor authentication for user accounts to reduce the impact of session hijacking attempts and establish monitoring procedures to detect unusual activity patterns that might indicate exploitation attempts. The vulnerability underscores the importance of proper security practices in web application development, particularly around user input handling and output sanitization, as outlined in OWASP Top 10 security guidelines and industry best practices for secure coding.