CVE-2011-0648 in Avamar
Summary
by MITRE
Unspecified vulnerability in EMC Avamar before 5.0.4-30 allows remote authenticated users to gain privileges via unknown vectors.
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Analysis
by VulDB Data Team • 02/09/2019
The vulnerability identified as CVE-2011-0648 represents a critical privilege escalation flaw within EMC Avamar backup software versions prior to 5.0.4-30. This unspecified vulnerability affects the authentication and authorization mechanisms of the system, creating a potential pathway for remote authenticated attackers to elevate their privileges beyond their initial access level. The issue stems from inadequate privilege validation processes that fail to properly enforce access controls during user session management and administrative operations. Attackers who have already established legitimate authentication credentials can exploit this vulnerability to gain elevated privileges without additional authorization checks.
The technical nature of this vulnerability aligns with CWE-276, which describes improper privileges, indicating that the system fails to properly implement access control mechanisms. The flaw likely exists within the software's permission model or session management code where authenticated users can manipulate their access rights through unspecified vectors. This could involve manipulation of session tokens, exploitation of privilege escalation paths, or flaws in the authorization decision-making process that governs what actions authenticated users can perform within the system. The vulnerability's remote nature means that attackers do not require physical access to the system, and can potentially exploit it over network connections while maintaining their authenticated state.
The operational impact of this vulnerability is significant for organizations relying on EMC Avamar for data protection and backup operations. Remote authenticated privilege escalation can lead to complete system compromise, allowing attackers to access sensitive backup data, modify backup configurations, or even delete critical backup repositories. The vulnerability affects the integrity and confidentiality of backup environments, potentially exposing organizations to data loss, regulatory compliance violations, and extended recovery periods. Organizations with multiple backup servers or distributed backup environments may face widespread impact if this vulnerability is exploited across their infrastructure, as the privilege escalation could be leveraged to compromise entire backup ecosystems.
Organizations should implement immediate mitigation strategies including applying the vendor-provided patch for EMC Avamar version 5.0.4-30 or higher to address this vulnerability. Network segmentation and monitoring of backup server communications can help detect anomalous privilege escalation attempts. Security teams should review access controls and implement the principle of least privilege to minimize the potential impact of such vulnerabilities. The ATT&CK framework categorizes this type of vulnerability under privilege escalation techniques, specifically targeting the use of software vulnerabilities to gain elevated system privileges. Regular security assessments of backup infrastructure and monitoring for unauthorized privilege changes should be implemented as part of comprehensive security operations. Organizations should also consider implementing additional authentication controls such as multi-factor authentication for backup system access to provide defense in depth against potential exploitation of this and similar vulnerabilities.