CVE-2014-2865

Vulnerability

PaperThin CommonSpot versions before 7.0.2 and 8.x before 8.0.3 contain a path traversal vulnerability that can be triggered by injecting a null byte (\0) into a file path parameter. The application fails to properly sanitize user-supplied pathnames, allowing an attacker to truncate the path at the null byte and access files outside the intended web root directory. This issue is classified under CWE-22 (Improper Limitation of a Pathname to a Restricted Directory) and is exposed due to the direct request nature of many ColdFusion pages in CommonSpot [1].

Exploitation

An attacker can exploit this vulnerability by crafting a URL or request parameter that includes a null byte within a file path, such as ../../etc/passwd\0. The null byte causes the server to ignore the remainder of the path, effectively bypassing access controls. No authentication is required, as the vulnerable pages are accessible to anonymous users. The attack is performed over HTTP and does not require any user interaction [1].

Impact

Successful exploitation allows an attacker to read arbitrary files on the server, including configuration files, source code, and sensitive data. Because the ColdFusion service runs with SYSTEM privileges by default, the attacker may gain access to highly critical system files, potentially leading to full server compromise. The primary impact is information disclosure, but depending on the files accessed, it could escalate to privilege escalation or further attacks [1].

Mitigation

PaperThin released fixes in CommonSpot versions 7.0.2 and 8.0.3. Users should upgrade to these versions or later to remediate the vulnerability. No workarounds are documented in the available references. The vulnerability is not listed on the CISA Known Exploited Vulnerabilities (KEV) catalog as of the publication date [1].