Elgg Reflected XSS Vulnerability in elgg/elgg
Summary
CVE-2011-2935: Elgg Reflected XSS Vulnerability. Affects elgg/elgg versions < 1.7.11. Fixed in 1.7.11. How to fix ↓
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Background
Elgg is a Packagist package that provides a social networking platform for building communities and connecting people. It offers various features such as user profiles, activity streams, and content sharing. However, a vulnerability has been discovered in Elgg that allows for reflected cross-site scripting (XSS) attacks.
Vulnerability Detail
The vulnerability arises from the improper sanitization of the 'internalname' parameter. An attacker can exploit this by crafting a malicious URL that includes JavaScript code. When a victim clicks on the URL, the JavaScript code will execute in their browser, potentially leading to unauthorized actions or data theft. The severity of this vulnerability is considered moderate, with a CVSS score of 6.1.
How To Fix
Minimum fixed version
1.7.11
This is the first release that contains the fix.
composer require elgg/elgg:1.7.11Tip — Not sure which version your app runs? Vulert can match this fix to it. Scan free →
Workaround
If updating the package is not immediately feasible, a temporary workaround is to manually sanitize the 'internalname' parameter before using it in any output. This can be done by applying appropriate input validation and output encoding techniques. Here is an example of how to sanitize the parameter in PHP:
$internalname = htmlspecialchars($_GET['internalname'], ENT_QUOTES, 'UTF-8');
Conclusion
The Elgg package is vulnerable to a reflected XSS attack due to the improper sanitization of the 'internalname' parameter. To mitigate this vulnerability, it is crucial to update the package to version 1.7.11 or higher. If immediate updating is not possible, manual sanitization of the parameter can serve as a temporary workaround. For further support and assistance in vulnerability remediation, please contact DevNack.com.
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FAQ
The vulnerability allows an attacker to execute arbitrary script code in a victim's browser, potentially leading to unauthorized actions or data theft.
You can use the Vulert Playground at Vulert Scanner to check if your application is affected by this vulnerability. Simply provide your composer.lock file, and Vulert will analyze it for any open-source vulnerabilities, including this one.
Yes, updating the elgg/elgg package to version 1.7.11 or higher will fix this vulnerability.
If updating the package is not immediately feasible, you can manually sanitize the 'internalname' parameter before using it in any output. Refer to the 'workaround' section for an example in PHP.
The severity of this vulnerability is considered moderate, with a CVSS score of 6.1.
References
Related vulnerabilities
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