CVE-2019-3602 in Network Security Manager
Summary
by MITRE
Cross Site Scripting (XSS) vulnerability in McAfee Network Security Manager (NSM) Prior to 9.1 Update 5 allows an authenticated administrator to embed an XSS in the administrator interface via a specially crafted custom rule containing HTML.
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Analysis
by VulDB Data Team • 09/19/2023
The vulnerability identified as CVE-2019-3602 represents a critical cross site scripting flaw within McAfee Network Security Manager version 9.1 Update 4 and earlier releases. This security weakness specifically affects the administrative interface of the network security management platform, creating a significant risk for organizations that rely on McAfee NSM for their security infrastructure. The vulnerability stems from insufficient input validation and output encoding mechanisms within the custom rule creation functionality, which fails to properly sanitize user-supplied HTML content before rendering it within the administrator web interface.
The technical exploitation of this vulnerability occurs when an authenticated administrator user creates a custom rule containing malicious HTML code that is then executed within the context of other administrators who view the rule in the management interface. This type of vulnerability falls under CWE-79 - Improper Neutralization of Input During Web Page Generation, which specifically addresses the failure to properly escape or encode user-controllable data before incorporating it into dynamically generated web content. The flaw enables a sophisticated attacker who has gained administrative privileges to execute arbitrary JavaScript code in the browser of other administrators, potentially leading to complete compromise of the management interface and underlying security policies.
The operational impact of this vulnerability extends beyond simple script execution, as it can be leveraged to perform session hijacking attacks, steal administrative credentials, modify security policies, or redirect administrators to malicious sites for phishing purposes. According to ATT&CK framework, this vulnerability maps to T1059.007 - Command and Scripting Interpreter: JavaScript, where adversaries can execute malicious scripts in the context of a victim's browser session. The attack surface is particularly concerning because administrators often have elevated privileges and access to sensitive network security configurations, making successful exploitation potentially devastating for the entire security infrastructure.
Organizations should immediately implement the remediation measures provided by McAfee in their 9.1 Update 5 release, which includes enhanced input validation and output encoding for custom rule parameters. Additional mitigations should include implementing strict access controls for administrative accounts, enabling multi-factor authentication, regularly auditing administrator activities, and conducting security awareness training for privileged users. Network segmentation and monitoring of administrative interfaces can help detect anomalous behavior that might indicate exploitation attempts. The vulnerability demonstrates the critical importance of input validation in web applications and highlights how even authenticated administrative interfaces can contain security flaws that undermine the integrity of entire security ecosystems.