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Applicure dotDefender: stored cross-site scripting in admin interface

Published on Jun 1, 2010 in , ,

An advisory by EnableSecurity.

Description

Applicure dotDefender is a Web Application Firewall that can be installed on Windows and Linux servers.

From their website (applicure.com):

“dotDefender is the market-leading software Web Application Firewall (WAF). dotDefender boasts enterprise-class security, advanced integration capabilities, easy maintenance and low total cost of ownership (TCO). dotDefender is the perfect choice for protecting your website and web applications today.”

Technical details

The log viewer facility in dotDefender does not properly htmlencode user supplied input. This leads to a cross site scripting vulnerability when the log viewer displays HTTP headers.

How to reproduce the issue

One may use curl and insert headers containing html tags using the --header switch.

Example:

curl "http://website.org/c?a=<script>" \
    --header "<script>alert(1)</script>: aa"

When the administrator views the log viewer page, his/her web browser will execute the attacker’s javascript.

The following demo shows how an attacker can switch off dotDefender in order to bypass any “protection” offered by the WAF:

http://vimeo.com/12132622

Timeline

  • May 17, 2010: Initial contact
  • Jun 01, 2010: Release of this advisory

Solution

Upgrade to the latest version of dotDefender: http://www.applicure.com/

Disclaimer

The information in the advisory is believed to be accurate at the time of publishing based on currently available information. Use of the information constitutes acceptance for use in an AS IS condition. There are no warranties with regard to this information. Neither the author nor the publisher accepts any liability for any direct, indirect, or consequential loss or damage arising from use of, or reliance on, this information.