CVE-2018-14966 in EMLsoft
Summary
by MITRE
An issue was discovered in EMLsoft 5.4.5. The eml/upload/eml/?action=user&do=add page allows CSRF.
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Analysis
by VulDB Data Team • 03/13/2020
The vulnerability identified as CVE-2018-14966 represents a cross-site request forgery flaw within EMLsoft version 5.4.5, specifically affecting the user account creation functionality. This issue resides in the eml/upload/eml/?action=user&do=add endpoint which processes user registration requests without proper anti-CSRF protection mechanisms. The vulnerability allows attackers to execute unauthorized actions on behalf of authenticated users by tricking them into clicking malicious links or visiting compromised websites that submit forged requests to the vulnerable application.
The technical nature of this CSRF vulnerability stems from the absence of anti-CSRF tokens or other validation mechanisms in the user registration form. When a user accesses the affected page, the application accepts requests without verifying their origin or authenticity, making it susceptible to exploitation through social engineering attacks or by embedding malicious content on compromised websites. Attackers can craft malicious requests that, when executed by authenticated users, create new user accounts or modify existing ones without the user's knowledge or consent. This flaw directly maps to CWE-352, which defines Cross-Site Request Forgery as a weakness where the application fails to validate the source of requests, allowing attackers to perform unauthorized actions on behalf of victims.
The operational impact of this vulnerability extends beyond simple account creation, as it can be leveraged to establish persistent access points within the application environment. An attacker could create multiple user accounts with elevated privileges, potentially leading to privilege escalation scenarios or unauthorized data access. The vulnerability also poses risks to user data integrity and application security posture, as it enables unauthorized modifications to the user management system. From an attacker's perspective, this vulnerability represents a low-effort, high-impact vector for gaining unauthorized access to the application's user management functionality.
Mitigation strategies for this CSRF vulnerability should include implementing robust anti-CSRF token mechanisms throughout the application's user management flows. The solution requires generating unique, unpredictable tokens for each user session and validating them on every state-changing request. Organizations should also implement proper origin validation, use SameSite cookies, and ensure that all user management operations require explicit user confirmation. The fix aligns with ATT&CK technique T1548.002, which addresses privilege escalation through unauthorized access to user accounts, and emphasizes the importance of proper authentication and session management controls. Additionally, regular security testing and code reviews should be conducted to identify similar vulnerabilities in other application components, ensuring comprehensive protection against session management flaws.