Overview
CVE-2023-49565 is a serious cybersecurity vulnerability that affects the cbis_manager Podman container. This vulnerability can allow a remote attacker to execute arbitrary commands on the underlying system by exploiting improper sanitization of HTTP Headers. Organisations using the affected software are at a significant risk of system compromise or data leakage due to the severity of this vulnerability. Given the potential for elevated privileges and subsequent unauthorized access to sensitive data, this vulnerability demands immediate attention and remediation.
Vulnerability Summary
CVE ID: CVE-2023-49565
Severity: High (8.4/10)
Attack Vector: Network
Privileges Required: None
User Interaction: None
Impact: Potential system compromise or data leakage
Affected Products
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Product | Affected Versions
cbis_manager | All versions prior to patch
How the Exploit Works
This vulnerability arises due to improper sanitization of the HTTP Headers X-FILENAME, X-PAGE, and X-FIELD in the cbis_manager Podman container. An attacker can craft malicious header values within an HTTP request to the /api/plugins endpoint, which are then directly utilized within the subprocess.Popen Python function without adequate validation. This enables a remote attacker to execute arbitrary commands on the underlying system. The web service executes with root privileges within the container environment, providing an attacker with elevated privileges for the command execution.
Conceptual Example Code
Here is a conceptual example of how the vulnerability might be exploited:
POST /api/plugins HTTP/1.1
Host: target.example.com
X-FILENAME: ; cat /etc/passwd
X-PAGE: ; ls -la
X-FIELD: ; rm -rf /
{ "malicious_payload": "..." }In this example, an attacker sends a POST request with malicious commands in the X-FILENAME, X-PAGE, and X-FIELD headers. The server, failing to sanitize these inputs properly, executes the commands with root privileges.
Mitigation and Recommendations
A patch has been issued to address this vulnerability, and it is highly recommended that all affected organizations apply this patch immediately. In the interim, the use of a Web Application Firewall (WAF) or Intrusion Detection System (IDS) can serve as temporary mitigation. Additionally, restricting access to the management network with an external firewall can partially mitigate this risk.
Always practice good cybersecurity hygiene by keeping all systems and software up-to-date, monitoring network traffic for suspicious activity, and implementing strong access controls.
