CVE-2020-3124 in Hosted Collaboration Mediation Fulfillment
Summary
by MITRE
A vulnerability in the web-based interface of Cisco Hosted Collaboration Mediation Fulfillment (HCM-F) could allow an unauthenticated, remote attacker to conduct a cross-site request forgery (CSRF) attack on an affected system. The vulnerability is due to insufficient CSRF protections by the affected software. An attacker could exploit this vulnerability by persuading a targeted user to click a malicious link. A successful exploit could allow the attacker to send arbitrary requests that could change the password of a targeted user. An attacker could then take unauthorized actions on behalf of the targeted user.
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Analysis
by VulDB Data Team • 09/23/2020
The vulnerability identified as CVE-2020-3124 affects Cisco Hosted Collaboration Mediation Fulfillment (HCM-F) web-based interface, representing a critical security weakness that undermines the integrity of user sessions and system access controls. This issue resides within Cisco's collaboration infrastructure software that facilitates hosted communication services, making it a significant concern for organizations relying on Cisco's hosted collaboration solutions for their business operations. The vulnerability stems from inadequate implementation of cross-site request forgery protections, which is a fundamental security control that should prevent unauthorized actions from being executed on behalf of authenticated users without their explicit consent.
The technical flaw manifests as a missing or insufficient CSRF token validation mechanism within the HCM-F web interface components. When a user interacts with the web application, legitimate requests should include unique, unpredictable tokens that verify the request originates from the intended user interface rather than from malicious third parties. This vulnerability allows attackers to craft malicious web pages or links that, when clicked by an authenticated user, automatically submit requests to the vulnerable HCM-F system without the user's knowledge or consent. The absence of proper CSRF protection mechanisms creates a pathway for attackers to manipulate the application's behavior through crafted requests that appear to originate from legitimate user sessions.
The operational impact of this vulnerability extends beyond simple password changes, as it provides attackers with the capability to perform unauthorized actions on behalf of targeted users within the affected system. Successful exploitation could enable attackers to modify user accounts, access sensitive collaboration data, manipulate communication settings, or potentially escalate privileges within the hosted environment. This type of vulnerability is particularly dangerous in enterprise environments where collaboration platforms serve as critical communication infrastructure, as it could lead to data breaches, unauthorized access to confidential communications, or disruption of business operations. The remote nature of the attack means that adversaries can exploit this weakness from anywhere on the internet without requiring physical access to the network or system.
Organizations should implement immediate mitigations including deploying web application firewalls that can detect and block CSRF attacks, ensuring proper CSRF token implementation across all web applications, and conducting thorough security assessments of their hosted collaboration environments. The vulnerability aligns with CWE-352, which specifically addresses Cross-Site Request Forgery, and maps to ATT&CK technique T1566.001 for the initial access phase through spearphishing with a link. System administrators should also consider implementing additional monitoring for unusual authentication patterns and user account modifications, as well as ensuring that all Cisco software components receive timely security updates and patches. The affected systems require comprehensive security hardening measures including proper input validation, session management controls, and regular security audits to prevent exploitation of similar weaknesses in the broader application ecosystem.