CVE-2018-16887 in Satellite
Summary
by MITRE
A cross-site scripting (XSS) flaw was found in the katello component of Satellite. An attacker with privilege to create/edit organizations and locations is able to execute a XSS attacks against other users through the Subscriptions or the Red Hat Repositories wizards. This can possibly lead to malicious code execution and extraction of the anti-CSRF token of higher privileged users. Versions before 3.9.0 are vulnerable.
Be aware that VulDB is the high quality source for vulnerability data.
Analysis
by VulDB Data Team • 06/26/2023
The vulnerability identified as CVE-2018-16887 represents a critical cross-site scripting flaw within the katello component of Red Hat Satellite, a comprehensive systems management platform that provides lifecycle management for Red Hat Enterprise Linux environments. This vulnerability specifically affects versions prior to 3.9.0 and demonstrates how insufficient input validation and output encoding can create persistent security risks within enterprise management systems. The flaw exists in the Subscriptions and Red Hat Repositories wizards, which are core components used by system administrators to manage software repositories and subscription entitlements across managed systems.
The technical implementation of this vulnerability stems from inadequate sanitization of user inputs within the katello component's web interface. Attackers with minimal privileges to create or edit organizations and locations can inject malicious script code through the wizard interfaces, which then executes in the context of other authenticated users who view the affected pages. This type of vulnerability maps directly to CWE-79 - Improper Neutralization of Input During Web Page Generation, which is a fundamental weakness in web application security that allows malicious code execution through manipulated input fields. The flaw particularly leverages the trust relationship between the web application and its users, where legitimate administrative functions become attack vectors for privilege escalation and session hijacking.
The operational impact of this vulnerability extends beyond simple script execution, as it creates potential for complete session compromise and privilege escalation. When higher-privileged users interact with the affected wizards, their anti-CSRF tokens may be extracted by the injected malicious code, effectively allowing attackers to impersonate these users and perform administrative actions within the Satellite environment. This capability significantly undermines the security model of the platform, as it enables attackers to bypass normal access controls and potentially gain complete control over the managed systems. The vulnerability particularly affects enterprise environments where Satellite is used for critical system management, as the compromise of administrative sessions can lead to widespread system compromise and data exfiltration.
Organizations affected by this vulnerability should immediately implement the recommended mitigation strategies, which include upgrading to Satellite version 3.9.0 or later where the XSS protections have been properly implemented. The fix typically involves proper input validation and output encoding of all user-supplied data within the affected wizards, ensuring that any potentially malicious content is neutralized before rendering in the web interface. Security teams should also implement additional monitoring for suspicious activity within the Satellite environment, particularly around organization and location creation events, as these represent the attack surface where the vulnerability can be initially exploited. This vulnerability demonstrates the importance of comprehensive security testing for administrative interfaces and the critical need for proper input sanitization in enterprise management platforms, aligning with ATT&CK technique T1059.007 - Command and Scripting Interpreter: PowerShell, which emphasizes the need for robust input validation to prevent code injection attacks.