CVE-2018-14965 in EMLsoft
Summary
by MITRE
An issue was discovered in EMLsoft 5.4.5. The eml/upload/eml/?action=address&do=add page allows CSRF.
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Analysis
by VulDB Data Team • 03/13/2020
The vulnerability identified as CVE-2018-14965 resides within EMLsoft version 5.4.5, specifically affecting the web application's file upload and address management functionality. This issue represents a critical security flaw that undermines the application's ability to prevent cross-site request forgery attacks. The vulnerable endpoint eml/upload/eml/?action=address&do=add serves as an attack vector where malicious actors can exploit the lack of proper CSRF protection mechanisms to execute unauthorized actions on behalf of authenticated users.
The technical flaw stems from the absence of anti-CSRF tokens or similar validation mechanisms within the targeted web page. When a user accesses the address management functionality, the application fails to verify that the request originates from the legitimate user interface rather than from a malicious third-party site. This omission creates a scenario where an attacker can craft a malicious web page or email that, when visited by an authenticated user, automatically submits requests to the vulnerable endpoint. The flaw directly corresponds to CWE-352, which defines Cross-Site Request Forgery as a vulnerability where the application fails to validate the source of requests, allowing attackers to perform actions without user consent.
The operational impact of this vulnerability extends beyond simple data manipulation, as it provides attackers with the capability to add unauthorized addresses to the system. This could lead to various malicious outcomes including account takeover, data exfiltration, or the establishment of persistent access points within the application's address management system. The vulnerability is particularly dangerous because it operates silently in the background, allowing attackers to perform actions that would normally require explicit user interaction. From an attacker's perspective, this represents a low-effort, high-impact vector that can be weaponized through social engineering techniques, making it a prime target for exploitation in real-world scenarios.
The implications of this vulnerability align with several ATT&CK techniques including T1566 for social engineering and T1078 for valid accounts usage. Organizations utilizing EMLsoft 5.4.5 should implement immediate mitigations including the deployment of CSRF tokens for all state-changing operations, implementation of referer header validation, and consideration of SameSite cookies for additional protection. The vulnerability demonstrates the critical importance of input validation and request origin verification in web applications, particularly those handling user data management functions. Security teams should conduct comprehensive audits of all web application endpoints to identify similar CSRF vulnerabilities and ensure that proper anti-CSRF mechanisms are implemented across the entire application stack to prevent unauthorized modifications to user data and system configurations.