CVE-2018-3820 in Kibana
Summary
by MITRE
Kibana versions after 6.1.0 and before 6.1.3 had a cross-site scripting (XSS) vulnerability in labs visualizations that could allow an attacker to obtain sensitive information from or perform destructive actions on behalf of other Kibana users.
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Analysis
by VulDB Data Team • 01/18/2020
The vulnerability identified as CVE-2018-3820 represents a critical cross-site scripting flaw within the Kibana platform that emerged in versions following 6.1.0 but prior to 6.1.3. This security weakness specifically affected the labs visualizations component of the popular open-source data visualization and analytics platform. The vulnerability stemmed from inadequate input validation and output encoding mechanisms within the visualization rendering engine, creating an exploitable entry point for malicious actors seeking to manipulate the application's behavior. The flaw was particularly concerning because it allowed attackers to execute malicious scripts in the context of other users' sessions, effectively enabling them to impersonate legitimate users within the Kibana environment.
The technical exploitation of this vulnerability occurred through the manipulation of user-supplied input parameters within the labs visualization features. When Kibana processed visualization requests containing malicious script code, the application failed to properly sanitize or encode the data before rendering it in the browser context. This allowed attackers to inject JavaScript payloads that would execute within the victim's browser session, potentially enabling session hijacking, data exfiltration, or unauthorized administrative actions. The vulnerability was classified under CWE-79 as a classic cross-site scripting issue, where the application fails to validate or escape user-controllable data before incorporating it into dynamically generated web pages. The attack vector specifically targeted the visualization rendering pipeline, making it particularly dangerous as it could be exploited through legitimate user interactions with the Kibana interface.
The operational impact of CVE-2018-3820 extended beyond simple data theft, as it provided attackers with the capability to perform destructive actions on behalf of legitimate users. This included the potential for unauthorized access to sensitive log data, modification of visualization configurations, and access to administrative functions within the Kibana environment. The vulnerability was particularly dangerous in multi-user environments where different levels of access permissions were implemented, as successful exploitation could allow attackers to escalate privileges or gain access to information beyond their intended scope. Organizations using Kibana for security monitoring and log analysis faced significant risk, as attackers could manipulate visualizations to hide malicious activities or create false positives that would obscure genuine security threats. The vulnerability also posed risks to compliance requirements, as unauthorized access to sensitive data could violate regulatory standards such as gdpr, hipaa, and soc 2.
Mitigation strategies for CVE-2018-3820 centered on immediate patching of affected Kibana versions, with the release of 6.1.3 providing the necessary security fixes. Organizations should have implemented network segmentation and access controls to limit exposure to the Kibana interface, particularly in environments where untrusted users had access to the platform. The security community recommended enabling strict content security policies and implementing additional input validation measures to prevent similar vulnerabilities from occurring in the future. From an ATT&CK framework perspective, this vulnerability aligned with techniques such as T1059.007 for scripting and T1566 for social engineering through malicious web content, demonstrating how seemingly benign user interface components could become attack vectors. Organizations should have conducted thorough security assessments of their Kibana deployments, reviewed user access controls, and implemented monitoring for suspicious activities that might indicate exploitation attempts. The vulnerability also highlighted the importance of regular security updates and the need for organizations to maintain current knowledge of security advisories affecting their software stack.