CVE-2007-2713 in ifdate
Summary
by MITRE
ifdate 2.x sends a redirect to the web browser but does not exit when administrative credentials are missing, which allows remote attackers to obtain administrative access via a direct request for the admin/ URI.
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Analysis
by VulDB Data Team • 08/31/2018
The vulnerability described in CVE-2007-2713 affects ifdate 2.x software, a web-based network monitoring tool that provides network statistics and system information through a web interface. This flaw represents a critical access control weakness that directly impacts the security posture of systems running this software. The vulnerability specifically manifests when administrative credentials are not properly provided during authentication attempts, creating an exploitable condition that bypasses normal authentication mechanisms.
The technical flaw lies in the software's handling of administrative requests where the system fails to properly terminate or exit when authentication credentials are absent or invalid. Instead of rejecting the request and terminating the connection, the application sends an HTTP redirect response to the web browser while continuing to process the request. This behavior creates a race condition or state management issue where the application remains in an inconsistent state, allowing unauthorized access to administrative functions through direct URI access patterns.
From an operational perspective, this vulnerability enables remote attackers to obtain administrative access simply by making a direct request to the admin/ URI endpoint without proper authentication. The flaw essentially provides a backdoor path that bypasses the normal authentication flow, allowing attackers to gain full administrative privileges on the affected system. This represents a severe privilege escalation vulnerability that could lead to complete system compromise, data exfiltration, and persistent access within the network environment.
The vulnerability aligns with CWE-284, which addresses improper access control issues in software applications, and demonstrates characteristics consistent with weak session management and authentication bypass flaws. From an ATT&CK framework perspective, this vulnerability maps to technique T1078 for valid accounts and T1566 for malicious file execution, as attackers could leverage this access to establish persistence and deploy additional malicious tools. The attack vector is particularly concerning as it requires no complex exploitation techniques beyond basic web requests.
Mitigation strategies should include immediate patching of the affected ifdate 2.x software to the latest version that addresses this authentication bypass flaw. Organizations should also implement network segmentation to limit access to administrative interfaces, enforce strong authentication mechanisms, and monitor for unauthorized access attempts. Additional protective measures include configuring web application firewalls to block direct access to administrative URIs and implementing proper logging and monitoring of authentication attempts to detect potential exploitation attempts. The vulnerability underscores the critical importance of proper authentication handling and state management in web applications, particularly those providing administrative interfaces that could serve as attack vectors for privilege escalation.