Adversaries may take advantage of security vulnerabilities and inherent functionality in browser software to change content, modify user-behaviors, and intercept information as part of various browser session hijacking techniques.(Citation: Wikipedia Man in the Browser)
A specific example is when an adversary injects software into a browser that allows them to inherit cookies, HTTP sessions, and SSL client certificates of a user then use the browser as a way to pivot into an authenticated intranet.(Citation: Cobalt Strike Browser Pivot)(Citation: ICEBRG Chrome Extensions) Executing browser-based behaviors such as pivoting may require specific process permissions, such as <code>SeDebugPrivilege</code> and/or high-integrity/administrator rights.
Another example involves pivoting browser traffic from the adversary's browser through the user's browser by setting up a proxy which will redirect web traffic. This does not alter the user's traffic in any way, and the proxy connection can be severed as soon as the browser is closed. The adversary assumes the security context of whichever browser process the proxy is injected into. Browsers typically create a new process for each tab that is opened and permissions and certificates are separated accordingly. With these permissions, an adversary could potentially browse to any resource on an intranet, such as Sharepoint or webmail, that is accessible through the browser and which the browser has sufficient permissions. Browser pivoting may also bypass security provided by 2-factor authentication.(Citation: cobaltstrike manual)
View in MITRE ATT&CK®| Capability ID | Capability Description | Mapping Type | ATT&CK ID | ATT&CK Name | Notes |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| CVE-2012-0767 | Adobe Flash Player Cross-Site Scripting (XSS) Vulnerability | primary_impact | T1185 | Browser Session Hijacking |
Comments
This cross-site scripting vulnerability has been exploited in the wild by enticing a user to click on a link to a malicious website. The attacker
can then impersonate the user and perform actions such as changing the user's settings on the website or accessing the user's webmail.
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| CVE-2022-24682 | Zimbra Webmail Cross-Site Scripting Vulnerability | secondary_impact | T1185 | Browser Session Hijacking |
Comments
This vulnerability is exploited by an attacker via spear-phishing emails containing malicious links to inject arbitrary HTML and JavaScript into the document by placing executable JavaScript inside element attributes. This results in unescaped markup, enabling the attacker to execute JavaScript in the context of a user's Zimbra session, leading to potential data theft and other malicious activities.
This vulnerability was identified by Volexity in December 2021 during a series of targeted spear-phishing campaigns conducted by a threat actor tracked as TEMP_Heretic. The campaigns aimed to exploit this zero-day vulnerability, allowing attackers to execute arbitrary JavaScript in the context of a user's Zimbra session.
The attack involved two phases: an initial reconnaissance phase using emails with embedded remote images to track if targets opened the messages, and a second phase with spear-phishing emails containing malicious links. If a target clicked on these links while logged into the Zimbra webmail client, the attacker could exploit the vulnerability to steal email data and attachments.
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