CVE-2005-4157 in WinRoute Firewall
Summary
by MITRE
Unspecified vulnerability in Kerio WinRoute Firewall before 6.1.3 allows remote attackers to authenticate to the service using an account that has been disabled.
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Analysis
by VulDB Data Team • 06/24/2018
The vulnerability described in CVE-2005-4157 represents a critical authentication flaw within Kerio WinRoute Firewall software versions prior to 6.1.3. This unspecified weakness in the firewall's authentication mechanism creates a significant security risk by allowing unauthorized remote access through disabled user accounts. The vulnerability stems from improper validation of account status during the authentication process, effectively bypassing account disablement policies that should prevent access to deactivated credentials. This type of flaw falls under the broader category of authentication bypass vulnerabilities that can severely compromise network security boundaries.
The technical implementation of this vulnerability demonstrates a failure in access control validation where the firewall service does not properly verify whether an account remains active before granting authentication access. Attackers can exploit this by attempting to authenticate using credentials associated with disabled accounts, which should normally be rejected by the system. The flaw exists at the authentication layer of the firewall service, where account status checking mechanisms are either absent or inadequately implemented. This issue represents a failure in proper account management and authentication flow control that violates fundamental security principles of least privilege and account lifecycle management. From a cybersecurity perspective, this vulnerability enables attackers to maintain persistent access through compromised or disabled accounts, undermining the integrity of the firewall's access control system.
The operational impact of this vulnerability extends beyond simple unauthorized access, creating potential for extended network infiltration and data exfiltration. Remote attackers can leverage this flaw to maintain access to the firewall service even after legitimate users have been disabled, effectively bypassing account management policies that should prevent such access. This vulnerability undermines the firewall's primary security function by allowing unauthorized authentication, potentially enabling attackers to manipulate firewall rules, monitor network traffic, or gain access to protected network segments. The remote exploit capability means that attackers do not require physical access or local network presence to exploit this vulnerability, making it particularly dangerous in enterprise environments where firewalls serve as primary network security perimeters. This issue can be classified under CWE-287 which addresses improper authentication, and aligns with ATT&CK technique T1078 for valid accounts, as attackers can leverage disabled accounts to maintain access to systems.
Mitigation strategies for CVE-2005-4157 should prioritize immediate software updates to Kerio WinRoute Firewall version 6.1.3 or later, which contains the necessary fixes for account status validation during authentication. Network administrators must also implement additional monitoring controls to detect unauthorized authentication attempts and account access patterns that could indicate exploitation of this vulnerability. Security policies should be reviewed to ensure proper account disablement procedures are enforced and that disabled accounts are promptly removed from authentication systems. Organizations should consider implementing multi-factor authentication mechanisms and additional access control layers beyond the firewall's native authentication system to provide defense-in-depth. Regular security assessments should verify that account status validation is properly enforced across all network security devices, and access control audits should be conducted to identify any accounts that may still be accessible despite being disabled. The vulnerability highlights the importance of maintaining up-to-date security software and proper account lifecycle management procedures to prevent exploitation of authentication bypass flaws.