CVE-2008-6709 in Communication Manager
Summary
by MITRE
Unspecified vulnerability in the Web management interface in Avaya SIP Enablement Services (SES) 3.x and 4.0, as used with Avaya Communication Manager 3.1.x, allows remote authenticated users to execute arbitrary commands via unknown vectors related to configuration of "local data viewing or restoring parameters."
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Analysis
by VulDB Data Team • 12/12/2017
The vulnerability identified as CVE-2008-6709 represents a critical security flaw within the Web management interface of Avaya SIP Enablement Services version 3.x and 4.0 when integrated with Avaya Communication Manager 3.1.x. This issue affects a significant portion of enterprise communication infrastructure where Avaya SES serves as the primary interface for managing SIP-based voice services. The vulnerability specifically targets the configuration mechanisms related to local data viewing and restoring parameters, which are fundamental components for system administration and data management within the communication platform. The unspecified nature of the vulnerability vectors suggests that the flaw may encompass multiple attack surfaces within the web interface configuration subsystem, making it particularly dangerous as attackers can potentially exploit various pathways to achieve their objectives.
This security weakness constitutes a command execution vulnerability that enables remote authenticated users to perform arbitrary code execution on the affected system. The flaw exists within the processing of configuration parameters related to local data operations, where insufficient input validation and sanitization allows maliciously crafted parameters to be interpreted and executed as system commands. The vulnerability's classification as a remote authenticated issue indicates that an attacker must first obtain valid credentials to exploit the flaw, but once authenticated, they can leverage this vulnerability to execute commands with the privileges of the authenticated user. The impact extends beyond simple privilege escalation as the ability to execute arbitrary commands on the system provides attackers with complete control over the affected Avaya SES components, potentially leading to full system compromise and unauthorized access to sensitive communication data.
The operational impact of CVE-2008-6709 is severe and multifaceted within enterprise communication environments. Organizations using Avaya SES and Communication Manager components face potential data breaches, service disruption, and unauthorized access to their voice communication infrastructure. The vulnerability could enable attackers to modify system configurations, extract sensitive information, or establish persistent access points within the network. Given that this affects the Web management interface, the attack surface includes not only direct system compromise but also potential lateral movement within the network infrastructure. The vulnerability's presence in versions 3.x and 4.0 of SES indicates a widespread exposure across multiple generations of the platform, affecting organizations that may have deployed these systems for years. This long-term exposure period increases the risk of exploitation as organizations may have delayed patching or migration efforts, leaving their communication infrastructure vulnerable to compromise.
Security practitioners should implement immediate mitigations including network segmentation to isolate the affected systems, enforcing strict access controls and authentication mechanisms, and monitoring for suspicious configuration changes or command execution activities. The vulnerability aligns with CWE-77 and CWE-78 categories related to command injection flaws, which are commonly exploited in enterprise environments through web interfaces. Organizations should also consider implementing network intrusion detection systems to monitor for exploitation attempts and establish robust patch management procedures to ensure timely remediation of such vulnerabilities. The ATT&CK framework categorizes this vulnerability under the T1059.007 technique for command and scripting interpreter, specifically focusing on web shell execution and command injection attacks that leverage web application interfaces. Given the nature of the vulnerability, organizations should conduct comprehensive security assessments of their Avaya infrastructure, implement principle of least privilege access controls, and establish incident response procedures specifically designed to handle such remote command execution scenarios.