CVE-2018-19182 in Engelsystem
Summary
by MITRE
Engelsystem before commit hash 2e28336 allows CSRF.
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Analysis
by VulDB Data Team • 06/22/2023
The vulnerability identified as CVE-2018-19182 affects the Engelsystem application, a web-based tool used for managing volunteer shifts and scheduling. This system suffers from a Cross-Site Request Forgery flaw that exists prior to commit hash 2e28336, indicating a security weakness that was present in the codebase before a specific fix was implemented. The vulnerability resides in the application's failure to properly validate and verify the origin of HTTP requests, creating an opportunity for malicious actors to exploit the system through crafted requests that appear legitimate to the victim's browser.
The technical flaw manifests as the absence of proper CSRF protection mechanisms within the Engelsystem application. When users interact with the system, their browsers automatically include authentication cookies with requests to the server, which the application relies upon for authorization. However, without implementing anti-CSRF tokens or other validation methods, an attacker can construct malicious web pages or emails that, when visited by an authenticated user, automatically submit requests to the Engelsystem without the user's knowledge or consent. This vulnerability specifically impacts the application's ability to distinguish between legitimate user-initiated requests and those generated by malicious third parties, creating a fundamental security gap in the authentication flow.
The operational impact of this vulnerability extends beyond simple data exposure, as it allows attackers to perform unauthorized actions within the system on behalf of authenticated users. An attacker could potentially modify user accounts, alter shift schedules, delete records, or perform other administrative functions depending on the user's permissions level. The consequences are particularly concerning for an application managing volunteer coordination where unauthorized changes could disrupt scheduling operations, compromise shift assignments, or provide malicious actors with access to sensitive personnel information. This vulnerability essentially undermines the integrity of the user authentication system and could lead to significant operational disruptions in volunteer management processes.
Mitigation strategies for this CSRF vulnerability involve implementing robust anti-CSRF protection mechanisms such as the use of unique, unpredictable tokens for each user session that must be included with every state-changing request. The system should validate these tokens against the user's session data to ensure requests originate from legitimate sources. Additionally, implementing the SameSite cookie attributes can provide browser-level protection against CSRF attacks by preventing cookies from being sent in cross-site requests. Organizations should also conduct regular security assessments and code reviews to identify similar vulnerabilities, following industry standards such as CWE-352 which specifically addresses Cross-Site Request Forgery. The fix for this particular vulnerability was implemented in commit 2e28336, demonstrating the importance of maintaining up-to-date security practices and promptly applying patches to address known weaknesses. Organizations using Engelsystem should ensure they are running versions that include the CSRF protection mechanisms and regularly monitor for security updates to prevent exploitation of similar vulnerabilities in their systems.