CVE-2020-26516 in ALM
Summary
by MITRE • 06/08/2021
A CSRF issue was discovered in Intland codeBeamer ALM 10.x through 10.1.SP4. Requests sent to the server that trigger actions do not contain a CSRF token and can therefore be entirely predicted allowing attackers to cause the victim's browser to execute undesired actions in the web application through crafted requests.
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Analysis
by VulDB Data Team • 06/11/2021
The vulnerability identified as CVE-2020-26516 represents a critical cross-site request forgery flaw within Intland codeBeamer ALM version 10.x through 10.1.SP4. This security weakness stems from the application's failure to implement proper anti-CSRF mechanisms in its web interface, creating a significant risk for authenticated users who interact with the application's administrative functions. The vulnerability allows malicious actors to exploit the absence of CSRF tokens in server-side requests, enabling them to craft malicious payloads that can execute unauthorized actions on behalf of legitimate users.
The technical implementation of this vulnerability lies in the application's handling of HTTP requests that trigger administrative or sensitive operations within the codeBeamer ALM environment. When users perform actions such as creating new projects, modifying user permissions, or altering system configurations, these requests are processed without proper validation of the request origin or authenticity. The absence of CSRF tokens means that attackers can construct malicious web pages or send specially crafted requests that, when executed by a victim's browser, will be processed by the server as legitimate requests from the authenticated user. This flaw operates at the application layer and specifically affects the web interface's security controls.
The operational impact of this vulnerability is substantial as it allows attackers to perform unauthorized actions within the codeBeamer ALM environment, potentially leading to complete compromise of the application's integrity and availability. An attacker could manipulate user accounts, modify project configurations, or even gain elevated privileges within the system. The vulnerability is particularly dangerous because it can be exploited through social engineering techniques, where users might be tricked into visiting malicious websites or clicking on compromised links. The attack vector is particularly effective in enterprise environments where codeBeamer ALM is used for managing critical software development processes and intellectual property.
This vulnerability maps directly to CWE-352, which specifically addresses Cross-Site Request Forgery issues in web applications. The flaw also aligns with ATT&CK technique T1213.002, which covers data from information repositories, as successful exploitation could lead to unauthorized access to sensitive development data and system configurations. Organizations using codeBeamer ALM in production environments should immediately implement mitigations including the enforcement of CSRF tokens for all state-changing requests, implementation of SameSite cookie attributes, and proper request validation mechanisms. The recommended remediation involves upgrading to a patched version of the software, implementing proper anti-CSRF token generation and validation, and conducting security awareness training for users to recognize potential social engineering attacks. Additionally, network-level protections such as web application firewalls should be configured to monitor for suspicious patterns of requests that may indicate CSRF attack attempts.