CVE-2008-4128 in IOS
Summary
by MITRE
Multiple cross-site request forgery (CSRF) vulnerabilities in the HTTP Administration component in Cisco IOS 12.4 on the 871 Integrated Services Router allow remote attackers to execute arbitrary commands via (1) a certain "show privilege" command to the /level/15/exec/- URI, and (2) a certain "alias exec" command to the /level/15/exec/-/configure/http URI. NOTE: some of these details are obtained from third party information.
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Analysis
by VulDB Data Team • 11/04/2024
The vulnerability identified as CVE-2008-4128 represents a critical cross-site request forgery weakness within the HTTP Administration component of Cisco IOS 12.4 software running on 871 Integrated Services Routers. This flaw exists in the web-based management interface that allows unauthorized remote attackers to manipulate administrative functions without proper authentication. The vulnerability specifically affects the privilege escalation mechanisms within the router's web administration system, creating a pathway for attackers to execute commands with elevated privileges. The affected components operate at the administrative level, making this a severe security concern for network infrastructure devices.
The technical implementation of this CSRF vulnerability stems from the absence of proper anti-CSRF token validation within the HTTP administration interface of the affected Cisco IOS versions. When users access the web interface to perform administrative tasks, the system fails to validate that requests originate from legitimate authenticated sessions. Attackers can craft malicious web pages or exploit existing vulnerabilities to trick authenticated users into executing unintended commands. The vulnerability manifests through two specific attack vectors: the first involves executing a "show privilege" command through the /level/15/exec/- URI endpoint, while the second targets the "alias exec" command via the /level/15/exec/-/configure/http URI. These endpoints provide direct access to privileged execution functions, bypassing normal authentication mechanisms.
The operational impact of this vulnerability extends beyond simple privilege escalation, as it enables full administrative control over the affected routers. Attackers who successfully exploit this vulnerability can gain complete access to the router's configuration, modify network settings, establish backdoors, and potentially compromise the entire network infrastructure. The affected 871 Integrated Services Routers serve as critical network components in small to medium business environments, making this vulnerability particularly dangerous. The remote nature of the attack means that adversaries do not require physical access to the devices or network proximity to exploit the vulnerability. This creates a significant risk for organizations that rely on web-based administration interfaces for their network management operations.
Organizations affected by this vulnerability should implement immediate mitigations including disabling the HTTP administration interface when not actively required, implementing network segmentation to limit access to administrative interfaces, and deploying web application firewalls to detect and prevent CSRF attacks. The vulnerability aligns with CWE-352, which specifically addresses Cross-Site Request Forgery flaws in web applications, and maps to ATT&CK technique T1078.004 for Valid Accounts and T1566.001 for Phishing, as attackers typically leverage social engineering to trick administrators into visiting malicious sites. Cisco released security advisories and patches to address this vulnerability, emphasizing the importance of maintaining up-to-date firmware and implementing proper network access controls. The incident highlights the critical need for proper input validation and session management in network device web interfaces, particularly when handling administrative functions that require elevated privileges.