Multiple vulnerabilities have been recently discovered in Cisco TelePresence Collaboration Endpoint (CE) Software and Cisco RoomOS Software, which could potentially allow an attacker to exploit path traversal attacks, view sensitive data, or even write arbitrary files on the affected devices. Cisco has assigned a Common Vulnerabilities and Exposures (CVE) identifier CVE-2022-20811 to these vulnerabilities. In this post, we will provide an in-depth look at these vulnerabilities, the exploit details, and how to remediate them. To understand more about these vulnerabilities, you can read Cisco's official advisory at the following link: https://tools.cisco.com/security/center/content/CiscoSecurityAdvisory/cisco-sa-tandberg-trav-bpPfyfPz

Vulnerability Details

The core issue lies in the improper validation of user-supplied input on the affected software. An attacker could exploit this vulnerability by sending crafted HTTP requests, which may contain malicious payloads, to a targeted system. Due to insufficient input validation, the attacker could then traverse directories outside of the restricted path and potentially access, read or even write sensitive files on the system.

The vulnerability affects the following Cisco products running Cisco TelePresence Collaboration Endpoint (CE) Software or Cisco RoomOS Software:

Exploit Details

An attacker could potentially exploit this vulnerability by sending a specially crafted HTTP request, which may look like below example:

GET /../../../../../../etc/passwd HTTP/1.1
Host: victim-ip-address
User-Agent: CVE-2022-20811-Exploit
Connection: close

In this code snippet, the attacker tries to access the '/etc/passwd' file, which is outside the restricted path. If successful, the attacker would be able to read the contents of the targeted file.

Remediation Steps

Cisco has released software updates that address these vulnerabilities. It is highly recommended to update to the latest version of Cisco TelePresence Collaboration Endpoint (CE) Software and Cisco RoomOS Software. The latest versions, which contain fixes for the vulnerabilities, can be found at the following link:

https://software.cisco.com/download/home/286320356/type/282159854/release/ce9.15.3

In addition to applying these software updates, organizations should also consider implementing the following best practices:

1. Monitor network traffic for any unusual or suspicious activity. This could be indicative of a potential attack against the vulnerable systems.
2. Limit access to the management interface of the affected devices to trusted IP addresses. This can mitigate the risk of unauthorized access.
3. Implement proper network segmentation and access control lists to restrict access to sensitive information and system resources.

Conclusion

CVE-2022-20811 represents a serious threat to organizations using Cisco TelePresence Collaboration Endpoint (CE) Software and Cisco RoomOS Software, as it may allow attackers to traverse directories, view sensitive data, and write arbitrary files on affected devices. Organizations should act promptly to apply the necessary software updates and implement best practices to minimize the risk exposure to this vulnerability.

Timeline

Published on: 10/26/2022 15:15:00 UTC
Last modified on: 10/31/2022 17:43:00 UTC