CVE-2001-1260 in Argent Office
Summary
by MITRE
Avaya Argent Office uses weak encryption (trivial encoding) for passwords, which allows remote attackers to gain administrator privileges by sniffing and decrypting the sniffing the passwords during a system reboot.
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Analysis
by VulDB Data Team • 04/08/2019
The vulnerability identified as CVE-2001-1260 affects Avaya Argent Office systems that employ weak encryption mechanisms for password protection. This weakness stems from the implementation of trivial encoding rather than robust cryptographic methods, creating a significant security gap that adversaries can exploit. The vulnerability specifically manifests during system reboot operations when password credentials are transmitted, making this window of opportunity particularly dangerous for attackers who can intercept these communications.
The technical flaw resides in the insufficient encryption algorithm used by the Avaya Argent Office system, which operates on a trivial encoding scheme that provides minimal security protection. This approach fails to meet modern cryptographic standards and essentially offers no real barrier to determined attackers who can easily reverse engineer or decrypt the transmitted credentials. The weakness becomes particularly apparent during system reboot processes when authentication data flows through the network, creating a predictable and exploitable pattern that attackers can monitor and capture. This trivial encoding implementation directly violates established security principles and represents a clear violation of the principle of least privilege.
The operational impact of this vulnerability extends beyond simple credential theft, as it allows remote attackers to escalate their privileges to administrator level access within the targeted system. This privilege escalation capability enables attackers to gain full control over the Avaya Argent Office environment, potentially leading to complete system compromise, data exfiltration, and unauthorized modifications to critical business communications infrastructure. The attack vector requires only network monitoring capabilities and basic decryption skills, making it accessible to attackers with minimal technical expertise. This vulnerability creates a persistent threat that remains active during system reboots, providing attackers with multiple opportunities for exploitation.
The security implications of CVE-2001-1260 align with common weakness enumerations such as CWE-310, which addresses cryptographic issues and weak encryption implementations. This vulnerability also maps to several ATT&CK tactics including credential access and privilege escalation, demonstrating how weak encryption can serve as a foundational attack vector for broader compromise operations. Organizations using Avaya Argent Office systems face significant risk exposure, particularly in environments where network traffic is not properly secured or monitored. The vulnerability demonstrates the critical importance of implementing strong encryption standards and proper authentication mechanisms that cannot be easily bypassed or decrypted by unauthorized parties.
Mitigation strategies should focus on immediate implementation of robust encryption protocols and secure credential handling mechanisms within Avaya Argent Office systems. Organizations must ensure that all password transmissions utilize strong cryptographic algorithms such as AES or RSA encryption rather than trivial encoding methods. Network monitoring and intrusion detection systems should be deployed to detect and prevent unauthorized packet sniffing activities during system reboot operations. Regular security assessments and vulnerability scanning should be conducted to identify and remediate similar encryption weaknesses throughout the enterprise infrastructure. The implementation of network segmentation and secure communication channels can help reduce the attack surface and prevent unauthorized access to critical system communications. Additionally, system administrators should implement proper access controls and regularly update security configurations to maintain defense-in-depth strategies against such vulnerabilities.