CVE-2019-10179 in pki-core
Summary
by MITRE
A vulnerability was found in all pki-core 10.x.x versions, where the Key Recovery Authority (KRA) Agent Service did not properly sanitize recovery request search page, enabling a Reflected Cross Site Scripting (XSS) vulnerability. An attacker could trick an authenticated victim into executing specially crafted Javascript code.
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Analysis
by VulDB Data Team • 05/12/2025
The vulnerability identified as CVE-2019-10179 resides within the pki-core 10.x.x software ecosystem, specifically targeting the Key Recovery Authority KRA Agent Service component. This flaw represents a critical security weakness that undermines the integrity of the certificate management infrastructure by exploiting a common web application vulnerability pattern. The affected system operates within the public key infrastructure domain where secure key recovery mechanisms are essential for maintaining cryptographic system availability and preventing unauthorized access to sensitive cryptographic materials.
The technical root cause of this vulnerability stems from inadequate input sanitization within the KRA Agent Service's recovery request search functionality. When users interact with the search page interface, the system fails to properly validate and sanitize user-supplied input parameters before rendering them back to the browser. This omission creates a classic reflected cross site scripting attack vector where malicious payloads embedded in request parameters are executed within the victim's browser context. The vulnerability specifically affects the search page functionality that processes user queries for recovery requests, making it a prime target for attackers seeking to exploit authenticated sessions.
The operational impact of this vulnerability extends beyond simple script execution, as it enables attackers to leverage authenticated user sessions for malicious activities. An attacker must first gain access to a legitimate KRA Agent account to exploit this vulnerability effectively, but once achieved, the reflected XSS allows for persistent malicious activities including session hijacking, credential theft, and unauthorized access to sensitive recovery operations. The attack requires social engineering to trick authenticated users into clicking malicious links, but the actual exploitation occurs within the victim's browser without requiring additional privileges or system compromise.
This vulnerability aligns with CWE-79, which categorizes cross site scripting flaws as one of the most prevalent web application security issues. The ATT&CK framework would classify this as a web application attack vector under the technique of "Cross-Site Scripting" with potential subsequent actions including credential access and privilege escalation. Organizations relying on pki-core implementations face significant risk exposure as attackers can leverage this vulnerability to compromise the entire key recovery infrastructure, potentially leading to widespread cryptographic failures and unauthorized access to protected systems.
The recommended mitigations for this vulnerability involve implementing comprehensive input validation and output encoding mechanisms within the KRA Agent Service search functionality. Security patches should ensure that all user-supplied parameters are properly sanitized before being rendered back to the browser interface, with particular attention to HTML encoding of dynamic content. Organizations should also implement content security policies to prevent execution of unauthorized scripts, while regular security assessments should verify that all web application components properly handle user input. Additionally, implementing proper session management controls and monitoring for suspicious activity patterns can help detect potential exploitation attempts. The vulnerability underscores the importance of secure coding practices and input validation in cryptographic infrastructure components that handle sensitive user data and privileged operations.