CVE-2018-7196 Scanner

osTicket is a widely used open-source support ticket system designed for managing customer service requests. It is deployed by organizations globally to streamline customer support processes by managing, organizing, and archiving support tickets. Customers and employees alike utilize osTicket to submit queries and receive responses efficiently. By handling support requests in a systematic manner, it enhances customer communication and satisfaction. The software is customizable, allowing administrators to tailor the system to their workflows and requirements. Organizations ranging from small startups to large enterprises rely on osTicket for its comprehensive ticket management capabilities.

The Cross-Site Scripting (XSS) vulnerability is a significant security flaw that allows attackers to inject malicious scripts into web pages viewed by other users. It targets the lower layers of security in web applications, often exploiting areas where user input is allowed but not sufficiently sanitized. XSS can be utilized to steal session cookies, conduct phishing attacks, and execute other detrimental actions on behalf of the victim. The vulnerability occurs when user's input is rendered as HTML without proper escaping or encoding. This can lead to the potential theft of sensitive information and unauthorized actions performed on behalf of the user. Protecting against XSS involves ensuring that user inputs are correctly sanitized and validated before rendering.

The vulnerability in osTicket, specifically in the version before 1.10.2, lies within the /scp/index.php page. Attackers can leverage the "sort" parameter to inject arbitrary scripts or HTML content. For successful exploitation, an attacker could send a crafted URL to a user, leading to the execution of a payload without their knowledge. This type of injection aims to manipulate the browser's Document Object Model (DOM) to perform undesirable actions. Security measures such as Content Security Policies (CSP) can help mitigate such risks, but developers must ensure that all form inputs and query strings are adequately checked. Failure to neutralize XSS vulnerabilities can give attackers undue leverage over user data and system behavior.

An exploited XSS vulnerability in osTicket can have profound impacts. Attackers could execute arbitrary JavaScript in the context of users' browsers, leading to confidentiality breaches. Victims may unwittingly provide attackers with sensitive information such as session tokens or login credentials. Additionally, attackers might perform actions on behalf of the user, compromising system data integrity. This could severely damage the trust and credibility of the affected site. Prolonged exploitation without mitigation can lead to substantial data breaches and reputational harm for organizations using the compromised system.

REFERENCES

• https://blog.securityevaluators.com/vulnerabilities-found-in-popular-ticketing-system-dd273bda229c
• https://nvd.nist.gov/vuln/detail/CVE-2018-7196