CVE-2019-4176 in Cognos Controller
Summary
by MITRE
IBM Cognos Controller 10.2.0, 10.2.1, 10.3.0, 10.3.1, and 10.4.0 could allow a remote attacker to bypass security restrictions, caused by an error related to insecure HTTP Methods. An attacker could exploit this vulnerability to gain access to the system. IBM X-Force ID: 158881.
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Analysis
by VulDB Data Team • 10/05/2023
IBM Cognos Controller versions 10.2.0 through 10.4.0 contain a critical security vulnerability that allows remote attackers to bypass authentication mechanisms through improper handling of HTTP methods. This vulnerability stems from the application's insecure configuration of HTTP methods, which enables unauthorized access to protected system resources. The flaw specifically manifests when the application fails to properly validate or restrict the use of certain HTTP methods that should be restricted or disabled in a secure environment.
The technical implementation of this vulnerability involves the application's failure to properly sanitize or restrict HTTP methods such as PUT, DELETE, or OPTIONS that could be exploited to manipulate system resources or bypass authentication controls. When these methods are improperly handled, they can be used to perform unauthorized operations within the application's security boundaries. The vulnerability creates an attack surface where malicious actors can leverage these insecure HTTP methods to escalate privileges or access restricted functionality without proper authentication. This represents a fundamental failure in the application's security architecture and demonstrates poor input validation practices that align with CWE-20, which covers insecure input handling.
The operational impact of this vulnerability extends beyond simple unauthorized access, as it provides attackers with the ability to manipulate the application's underlying data and potentially compromise the entire system. Attackers can exploit this weakness to perform actions such as modifying configuration settings, accessing sensitive data, or even executing arbitrary code within the application's context. The vulnerability's remote exploitation capability means that attackers do not require physical access to the system or network, making it particularly dangerous in enterprise environments where such applications are often exposed to external networks. This vulnerability directly maps to ATT&CK technique T1210, which involves exploiting weak or unnecessary services, and represents a classic case of privilege escalation through insecure HTTP method handling.
Organizations running affected IBM Cognos Controller versions should immediately implement mitigations including disabling unnecessary HTTP methods, implementing proper input validation, and configuring web application firewalls to restrict access to potentially dangerous HTTP operations. The recommended approach involves reviewing and hardening the application's HTTP method configuration, ensuring that only necessary methods are enabled, and implementing proper authentication and authorization controls. Additionally, organizations should conduct comprehensive security assessments to identify any other applications or systems that may be similarly vulnerable to insecure HTTP method handling, as this represents a common pattern in web application security vulnerabilities that can be exploited across multiple platforms and technologies.