CVE-2010-2793 in spice-activex
Summary
by MITRE
Race condition in the SPICE (aka spice-activex) plug-in for Internet Explorer in Red Hat Enterprise Virtualization (RHEV) Manager before 2.2.4 allows local users to create a certain named pipe, and consequently gain privileges, via vectors involving knowledge of the name of this named pipe, in conjunction with use of the ImpersonateNamedPipeClient function.
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Analysis
by VulDB Data Team • 10/06/2021
The vulnerability identified as CVE-2010-2793 represents a critical race condition flaw within the SPICE (Simple Protocol for Independent Computing Environments) ActiveX plug-in component of Red Hat Enterprise Virtualization Manager. This issue specifically affects versions prior to 2.2.4 and manifests in the context of Internet Explorer browser integration, where the SPICE plug-in enables remote desktop functionality for virtual machine management. The vulnerability exploits a fundamental timing issue in how the plug-in handles named pipe creation and authentication processes, creating a window of opportunity for privilege escalation attacks.
The technical mechanism behind this vulnerability involves a race condition that occurs during the named pipe creation process within the SPICE ActiveX component. When the plug-in initializes, it creates a named pipe with a predictable naming convention that can be anticipated by local attackers. The flaw arises because the system does not properly synchronize access to this named pipe resource, allowing an attacker to create a malicious named pipe with the same name before the legitimate system process can establish it. This race condition enables the attacker to intercept communications and subsequently leverage the ImpersonateNamedPipeClient function to assume the identity of the legitimate user context, effectively gaining elevated privileges.
The operational impact of this vulnerability extends beyond simple privilege escalation, as it provides attackers with potential access to sensitive virtualization management functions within the RHEV environment. Since the SPICE plug-in operates within the context of Internet Explorer, successful exploitation could allow attackers to gain unauthorized access to virtual machine configurations, management interfaces, and potentially compromise the entire virtualization infrastructure. The vulnerability is particularly concerning because it requires minimal privileges to exploit, as local users can leverage their existing system access to manipulate the named pipe creation process and subsequently elevate their privileges to administrative levels.
This vulnerability maps to CWE-362, which specifically addresses race conditions in software development, and aligns with ATT&CK technique T1068, which covers local privilege escalation through the exploitation of system vulnerabilities. The attack vector leverages the principle of least privilege violation by allowing local users to bypass normal access controls and gain elevated system permissions. The exploit requires knowledge of the specific named pipe naming convention, which demonstrates that while the vulnerability is exploitable locally, it also represents a design flaw that could potentially be extended to more sophisticated attack scenarios if the naming pattern becomes predictable through other means.
Mitigation strategies for CVE-2010-2793 focus primarily on patch management and system hardening measures. Organizations should immediately upgrade their RHEV Manager installations to version 2.2.4 or later, where the race condition has been resolved through proper synchronization mechanisms. Additionally, system administrators should implement network segmentation to limit local access to systems running the SPICE plug-in, disable unnecessary ActiveX components in Internet Explorer, and monitor for suspicious named pipe creation activities. The vulnerability also underscores the importance of secure coding practices in component development, particularly around resource allocation and synchronization mechanisms, as recommended by the OWASP Secure Coding Practices and NIST Special Publication 800-115 guidelines for vulnerability management and remediation.