(PT-2012-08) Positive Technologies Security Advisory
XPath Injection in WinCC

Vulnerable software

WinCC
Version: 7.0 SP3 before Update 2 and earlier

Application link:
http://www.siemens.com/

Severity level

Severity level: Medium
Impact: XPath Injection
Access Vector: Network exploitable 

CVSS v2:
Base Score: 5.5
Vector: (AV:N/AC:L/Au:S/C:P/I:P/A:N)

CVE: CVE-2012-2596

Software description

Simatic WinCC is a part of Siemens SIMATIC HMI software that aimed to provide connection between an operator and PLCs that manage technological processes. SIMATIC HMI is responsible for technical process visualization,  alarm system, process assessment and error logging, and also manages device parameters. The software is used in a number of industries including food, oil, gas, chemical, power industries.

Vulnerability description

The specialists of the Positive Research center have a vulnerability detected "XPath Injection" in WinCC.

The web application does not implement XPath input control. An attacker can read and modify environmental settings via malformed URL.

How to fix

Update your software up to the latest version

Advisory status

23.05.2012 - Vendor is notified
23.05.2012 - Vendor gets vulnerability details
05.06.2012 - Vendor releases fixed version and details
20.06.2012 - Public disclosure

Credits

The vulnerability was discovered by Sergey Scherbel, Yury Goltsev, Dmitry Serebryannikov, Sergey Bobrov, Denis Baranov, Andrey Medov, Artem Chaykin, Positive Research Center (Positive Technologies Company)

References

http://en.securitylab.ru/lab/PT-2012-08
http://www.siemens.com/corporate-technology/pool/de/forschungsfelder/siemens_security_advisory_ssa-223158.pdf

Reports on the vulnerabilities previously discovered by Positive Research:

http://ptsecurity.com/research/advisory/
http://en.securitylab.ru/lab/

About Positive Technologies

Positive Technologies www.ptsecurity.com is among the key players in the IT security market in Russia.

The principal activities of the company include the development of integrated tools for information security monitoring (MaxPatrol); providing IT security consulting services and technical support; development of the Securitylab leading Russian information security portal.

Among the clients of Positive Technologies, there are more than 40 state enterprises, more than 50 banks and financial organizations, 20 telecommunication companies, more than 40 plant facilities, as well as IT, service and retail companies from Russia, the CIS countries, the Baltic States, China, Ecuador, Germany, Great Britain, Holland, Iran, Israel, Japan, Mexico, the Republic of South Africa, Thailand, Turkey, and the USA.

Positive Technologies is a team of highly skilled developers, advisers and experts with years of vast hands-on experience. The company specialists possess professional titles and certificates; they are the members of various international societies and are actively involved in the IT security field development.