CVE-2018-1514 in Robotic Process Automation with Automation Anywhere
Summary
by MITRE
IBM Robotic Process Automation with Automation Anywhere 10.0 is vulnerable to cross-site request forgery which could allow an attacker to execute malicious and unauthorized actions transmitted from a user that the website trusts. IBM X-Force ID: 141622.
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Analysis
by VulDB Data Team • 03/22/2023
IBM Robotic Process Automation with Automation Anywhere version 10.0 contains a critical cross-site request forgery vulnerability that enables attackers to perform unauthorized actions on behalf of authenticated users. This vulnerability resides in the web application interface of the automation platform, where the system fails to properly validate and authenticate cross-origin requests. The flaw allows malicious actors to craft specially crafted requests that, when executed by a victim user's browser, can trigger unintended operations within the RPA environment. The vulnerability specifically affects the authentication and authorization mechanisms that should prevent unauthorized modifications to automation workflows, user accounts, or system configurations. Attackers can exploit this weakness by tricking users into clicking malicious links or visiting compromised websites that automatically submit requests to the vulnerable RPA system. The attack typically involves leveraging the victim's existing session and authentication context to execute operations such as creating new user accounts, modifying existing workflows, or accessing sensitive automation data without proper authorization. This vulnerability directly maps to CWE-352, which defines cross-site request forgery as a weakness where a web application fails to validate that requests originate from legitimate sources. The operational impact extends beyond simple unauthorized access, as compromised RPA systems can lead to significant business disruption, data exfiltration, and potential lateral movement within enterprise networks where automation processes often interact with critical systems. The vulnerability exposes the underlying architecture to attacks that can manipulate the automation workflow execution, potentially causing unauthorized process automation that could result in financial loss, regulatory violations, or system compromise. According to the ATT&CK framework, this vulnerability aligns with techniques such as T1566.002 for spearphishing with links and T1078 for valid accounts, as attackers can leverage legitimate user sessions to perform malicious activities. The IBM X-Force ID 141622 confirms the severity and classification of this vulnerability within the IBM security ecosystem. Organizations using this RPA solution face elevated risk during the period when the vulnerability exists, as attackers can exploit the weakness to gain persistent access to automation environments that often contain privileged credentials and system integration points. The vulnerability represents a fundamental flaw in the web application's security model, where session management and request validation mechanisms are insufficient to prevent unauthorized operations. Mitigation strategies should include implementing proper anti-CSRF tokens in all state-changing requests, enforcing strict origin validation, and ensuring that all user interactions with the RPA system require explicit authentication confirmation. Security administrators should also consider network segmentation, monitoring for unusual automation activities, and regular security assessments of the RPA environment to detect potential exploitation attempts. The vulnerability demonstrates the critical importance of proper web application security controls in enterprise automation platforms where the attack surface can include both the automation interface and the underlying system integrations. Organizations should prioritize patching this vulnerability and implementing additional security controls to protect against similar weaknesses in other web applications that handle privileged operations and user sessions. The exposure of this vulnerability in a robotic process automation platform highlights the growing security concerns in automation environments where systems must maintain trust relationships with multiple enterprise applications and databases.