CVE-2019-17002 in Firefox
Summary
by MITRE
If upgrade-insecure-requests was specified in the Content Security Policy, and a link was dragged and dropped from that page, the link was not upgraded to https. This vulnerability affects Firefox < 70.
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Analysis
by VulDB Data Team • 01/09/2020
The vulnerability described in CVE-2019-17002 represents a critical security flaw in Firefox's handling of secure content policy directives, specifically impacting versions prior to 70. This issue stems from the improper implementation of the upgrade-insecure-requests Content Security Policy directive which is designed to instruct browsers to upgrade insecure requests to secure HTTPS connections. When a web page specifies this directive in its Content Security Policy header, it signals to the browser that all resources should be fetched over secure connections. However, the vulnerability manifests when users interact with links through drag-and-drop operations, creating a scenario where the security enhancement intended by the upgrade-insecure-requests directive fails to function properly.
The technical flaw occurs within Firefox's Content Security Policy implementation where the browser correctly processes the upgrade-insecure-requests directive for regular navigation and resource loading but fails to apply the same security upgrade when links are manipulated through drag-and-drop interactions. This inconsistency creates a security gap where users who are browsing pages with secure Content Security Policy directives may inadvertently expose themselves to man-in-the-middle attacks when interacting with content through drag-and-drop operations. The vulnerability specifically affects the browser's handling of link URLs during these interactions, leaving them in their original insecure HTTP format instead of upgrading them to HTTPS as the policy directive intends.
The operational impact of this vulnerability is significant for users who rely on Content Security Policy protections, particularly in environments where secure browsing is paramount. Attackers could exploit this weakness by crafting malicious web pages that implement upgrade-insecure-requests directives while simultaneously embedding links that would be vulnerable to interception during drag-and-drop operations. This creates an attack surface where sensitive data could be transmitted over insecure connections despite the presence of security policies designed to prevent such occurrences. The vulnerability essentially undermines the integrity of the browser's security model by creating an exception to the upgrade-insecure-requests policy that only applies to specific user interaction patterns.
This vulnerability aligns with CWE-310, which addresses cryptographic weakness and improper implementation of security policies. The issue also maps to ATT&CK technique T1071.004, which covers application layer protocol: DNS, as the attack could potentially leverage DNS resolution of insecure links to redirect users to malicious endpoints. Organizations and users should immediately update to Firefox version 70 or later where this vulnerability has been addressed through proper implementation of the upgrade-insecure-requests directive across all user interaction methods. The fix involves ensuring that drag-and-drop operations respect the Content Security Policy directives, particularly those related to secure connection upgrades, thereby maintaining consistency in security enforcement regardless of user interaction patterns. System administrators should verify that all Firefox installations within their environments are updated to prevent exploitation of this security gap that could compromise user data integrity and confidentiality.