CVE-2018-1364 in Content Navigator
Summary
by MITRE
IBM Content Navigator 2.0 and 3.0 is vulnerable to a XML External Entity Injection (XXE) attack when processing XML data. A remote attacker could exploit this vulnerability to expose sensitive information or consume memory resources. IBM X-Force ID: 137449.
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Analysis
by VulDB Data Team • 02/02/2021
IBM Content Navigator versions 2.0 and 3.0 contain a critical XML External Entity Injection vulnerability that allows remote attackers to manipulate XML processing behavior through crafted input data. This vulnerability falls under CWE-611 which specifically addresses XML External Entity processing flaws, making it a direct descendant of the well-known XXE attack vector. The flaw exists in the application's XML parser implementation where external entities are not properly restricted during document processing, creating an avenue for malicious actors to access internal system resources or initiate denial of service conditions through resource exhaustion attacks.
The technical exploitation of this vulnerability occurs when the application processes untrusted XML input without adequate sanitization or entity restriction measures. Attackers can craft malicious XML documents containing external entity declarations that reference internal system files, network resources, or trigger resource-intensive processing sequences. When the vulnerable application parses these documents, it will attempt to resolve the external entities, potentially exposing sensitive data such as system configuration files, user credentials, or internal network information. The vulnerability also enables memory consumption attacks where attackers can construct XML payloads that cause the application to allocate excessive memory resources, leading to denial of service conditions that impact system availability and performance.
From an operational perspective, this vulnerability poses significant risks to organizations using IBM Content Navigator in enterprise environments where sensitive content management and document processing occur. The remote exploit capability means attackers can target the application from outside the network perimeter without requiring prior access credentials, making it particularly dangerous for systems that are exposed to the internet or public networks. The potential impact includes unauthorized data access, system resource exhaustion, and possible information disclosure that could lead to further compromise of the broader enterprise infrastructure. Organizations relying on content navigation and document management systems for business-critical operations face heightened risk of data breaches and service disruptions.
Security mitigations for this vulnerability should focus on implementing proper XML parser configurations that disable external entity resolution and DTD processing entirely. Organizations should ensure that IBM Content Navigator instances are updated to versions that address this vulnerability through official patches provided by IBM. Network segmentation and firewall rules should be implemented to limit access to Content Navigator services, while input validation controls should be strengthened to prevent malformed XML processing. Additionally, security monitoring should be enhanced to detect unusual XML processing patterns or memory consumption spikes that might indicate exploitation attempts. This vulnerability aligns with ATT&CK technique T1213 which covers data from information repositories, and represents a classic example of how improper input validation can lead to information disclosure and system compromise in enterprise content management systems.