Cybersecurity threats are nothing new, and it's essential to stay informed about the latest discovered vulnerabilities that could affect our systems. One such vulnerability is CVE-2024-8504, a critical security vulnerability found in VICIdial, a popular open-source call center software suite. In this in-depth post, we will examine the vulnerability's inner-workings, how it can be exploited, and what you can do to mitigate the risk.
Overview
CVE-2024-8504 enables an attacker with authenticated access to VICIdial as an "agent" to execute arbitrary shell commands as the "root" user. This attack can be chained with CVE-2024-8503 to execute arbitrary shell commands starting from an unauthenticated perspective. The exploitation of this vulnerability could lead to unauthorized data access, unauthorized data modification, and disruption of service.
The issue occurs due to improper input validation, which can be exploited to execute arbitrary shell commands in the context of the root user. To understand the exploitation, let's take a closer look at the code.
Consider the following code snippet from the affected VICIdial file
$agent_id = $_GET['agent_id'];
$cmd = $_GET['cmd'];
if (valid_agent($agent_id)) {
execute_arbitrary_shell_command($cmd);
}
In the above code snippet, the 'agent_id' and 'cmd' variables are populated using unsanitized user input from the GET request. If an attacker can modify the 'agent_id' and 'cmd' parameters, they can ultimately execute arbitrary shell commands as the root user.
Exploit details
An attacker would need authenticated access to VICIdial as an agent for this vulnerability to be exploited. However, this attack can be chained with CVE-2024-8503, another VICIdial vulnerability, which doesn't require authentication.
CVE-2024-8503 can be exploited using the following request example
GET /vicidial/example.php?cmd=ANY_SHELL_COMMAND
By leveraging both CVE-2024-8504 and CVE-2024-8503, an attacker can compromise the entire system and gain root access, executing arbitrary shell commands.
For detailed information regarding CVE-2024-8504, please review the official security advisory listed in the original references section at the end of this post.
Mitigation
To remediate this vulnerability, proper input validation should be implemented during the handling of 'agent_id' and 'cmd' variables. Additionally, users are advised to apply any available security patches and updates provided by the VICIdial project.
It's also essential to follow best practices and routinely assess the security of your systems. Regularly applying security updates and monitoring for potential threats is vital. Given the potential severity of CVE-2024-8504 and its pairing with CVE-2024-8503, swift action should be taken to mitigate the risk.
Conclusion
As we can see, CVE-2024-8504 is a critical security vulnerability that can lead to unauthorized data access, unauthorized data modification, and disruption of service when exploited. Staying informed about the latest cybersecurity threats and implementing security best practices on your systems is essential to maintaining their integrity and safety.
Below you can find links to the original references for CVE-2024-8504 and CVE-2024-8503 for more information.
Original References
Timeline
Published on: 09/10/2024 20:15:05 UTC
Last modified on: 09/12/2024 14:35:23 UTC