CVE-2018-1824 in Rational Quality Manager
Summary
by MITRE
IBM Rational Quality Manager 5.0 through 6.0.6 is vulnerable to cross-site scripting. This vulnerability allows users to embed arbitrary JavaScript code in the Web UI thus altering the intended functionality potentially leading to credentials disclosure within a trusted session. IBM X-Force ID: 150427.
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Analysis
by VulDB Data Team • 08/01/2023
IBM Rational Quality Manager versions 5.0 through 6.0.6 contains a cross-site scripting vulnerability that represents a critical security weakness in the web-based user interface. This vulnerability stems from insufficient input validation and output encoding mechanisms within the application's web components, allowing malicious actors to inject malicious javascript code through user-controllable input fields. The flaw exists in the application's handling of user-supplied data that is subsequently rendered in web pages without proper sanitization, creating an environment where attacker-controlled content can be executed in the context of authenticated user sessions.
The technical nature of this vulnerability aligns with CWE-79, which specifically addresses cross-site scripting flaws in web applications. This weakness enables attackers to execute scripts in the victim's browser within the security context of the hosting application, potentially compromising user sessions and accessing sensitive information. The vulnerability particularly affects authenticated users who have legitimate access to the Rational Quality Manager system, making it especially dangerous as attackers can leverage existing trust relationships to perform credential theft or unauthorized actions. The attack vector typically involves crafting malicious input that gets stored and subsequently executed when other users view the affected pages, creating a persistent threat within the application's interface.
The operational impact of this vulnerability extends beyond simple script execution, as it can lead to complete session hijacking and credential disclosure within trusted sessions. When authenticated users interact with compromised pages, their browser sessions become vulnerable to manipulation by attackers who can capture session tokens, cookies, or other authentication mechanisms. This creates a significant risk for organizations relying on Rational Quality Manager for software testing and quality assurance processes, as the compromised system could provide attackers with access to test data, project information, and potentially production-related details. The vulnerability undermines the integrity of the application's security model by allowing unauthorized code execution in the context of legitimate user sessions, making detection and prevention particularly challenging.
Organizations should implement immediate mitigations including input validation and output encoding controls to prevent malicious script injection, along with regular security updates from IBM to address the vulnerability. The recommended approach involves deploying web application firewalls that can detect and block suspicious script patterns, implementing content security policies to restrict script execution, and conducting thorough security testing of user input fields within the application. Additionally, organizations should consider implementing network segmentation to limit the potential impact of exploitation and establish monitoring procedures to detect unauthorized access attempts. The vulnerability demonstrates the importance of maintaining up-to-date security controls and following secure coding practices as outlined in the ATT&CK framework's web application exploitation techniques, particularly those related to client-side attacks and session management compromises.