CVE-2022-25028 in Home Owners Collection Management System
Summary
by MITRE • 03/01/2022
Home Owners Collection Management System v1.0 was discovered to contain a cross-site scripting (XSS) vulnerability via the collected_by parameter under the List of Collections module.
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Analysis
by VulDB Data Team • 03/04/2022
The vulnerability identified as CVE-2022-25028 affects the Home Owners Collection Management System version 1.0, specifically within the List of Collections module where the collected_by parameter is susceptible to cross-site scripting attacks. This represents a critical security flaw that allows attackers to inject malicious scripts into web applications that are then executed in the context of other users' browsers. The vulnerability stems from inadequate input validation and output encoding mechanisms within the application's parameter handling, particularly when processing user-supplied data through the collected_by field. Such weaknesses create an avenue for malicious actors to exploit the system's trust in user input, potentially compromising the integrity and confidentiality of the application's data and user interactions.
The technical implementation of this XSS vulnerability occurs when the application fails to properly sanitize or encode user input before rendering it within web pages. The collected_by parameter, which likely serves to identify individuals responsible for collecting homeowner information, becomes a vector for script injection attacks. When an attacker crafts malicious input containing script tags or other executable code within this parameter, and the application subsequently displays this unvalidated data without proper HTML encoding or context-appropriate sanitization, the injected code executes in the browsers of legitimate users who view the affected page. This type of vulnerability falls under CWE-79 which specifically addresses cross-site scripting flaws in software applications, representing one of the most prevalent and dangerous web application security weaknesses.
The operational impact of this vulnerability extends beyond simple data exposure, potentially enabling attackers to perform a wide range of malicious activities including session hijacking, credential theft, and data manipulation. An attacker could craft payloads that steal session cookies from authenticated users, redirect them to malicious sites, or inject additional malicious scripts that could lead to complete system compromise. The vulnerability also poses risks to user privacy and data integrity, as any information displayed in the context of the vulnerable parameter could be manipulated or accessed by unauthorized parties. Given that this affects a collection management system, the potential for data breaches involving sensitive homeowner information creates significant compliance and regulatory risks, particularly under frameworks such as gdpr, hipaa, and other data protection legislation that mandate robust security controls for personal information handling.
Effective mitigation strategies for CVE-2022-25028 require immediate implementation of proper input validation and output encoding mechanisms throughout the application's codebase. The most critical remediation involves implementing strict sanitization of all user inputs, particularly those that are rendered within web pages, using context-appropriate encoding techniques such as html entity encoding for display contexts. Additionally, developers should implement Content Security Policy headers to limit the sources from which scripts can be executed and employ proper parameter validation that rejects or sanitizes potentially malicious input patterns. The system should also implement proper input length limits and character set restrictions for the collected_by parameter to prevent exploitation through overly long inputs or unexpected character sequences. Organizations should conduct comprehensive security testing including automated scanning and manual penetration testing to identify similar vulnerabilities across the entire application stack, while also implementing regular security training for development teams to prevent similar issues in future releases. This vulnerability demonstrates the importance of following secure coding practices and adhering to established security frameworks such as those recommended by the owasp top ten and mitre att&ck framework, which emphasize the critical need for input validation and output encoding as fundamental security controls.