CVE-2011-1543 in Systems Insight Manager
Summary
by MITRE
Cross-site request forgery (CSRF) vulnerability in HP Systems Insight Manager (SIM) before 6.3 allows remote attackers to hijack the authentication of unspecified victims via unknown vectors.
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Analysis
by VulDB Data Team • 01/15/2018
The CVE-2011-1543 vulnerability represents a critical cross-site request forgery flaw discovered in Hewlett Packard's Systems Insight Manager software version 6.2 and earlier. This vulnerability resides within the web-based administration interface of SIM, which is commonly used for monitoring and managing hp server infrastructure across enterprise environments. The flaw enables remote attackers to manipulate authenticated sessions without proper authorization, potentially leading to unauthorized administrative actions against targeted systems. Systems Insight Manager serves as a comprehensive monitoring solution that provides centralized management of hp server hardware, making it an attractive target for attackers seeking persistent access to enterprise IT infrastructure.
The technical implementation of this CSRF vulnerability stems from insufficient validation of request origins and lack of proper anti-CSRF token mechanisms within the SIM web interface. Attackers can craft malicious web pages or send specially crafted requests that, when executed by an authenticated user, perform administrative actions on the SIM server without the user's knowledge or consent. The vulnerability manifests through unspecified attack vectors that typically involve social engineering techniques where victims are tricked into visiting malicious websites or clicking on compromised links. The absence of robust session management and request verification mechanisms creates an exploitable condition where legitimate administrative functions can be invoked by unauthorized parties. This flaw operates at the application layer and specifically affects the web-based management interface rather than the underlying system components, making it particularly dangerous for enterprise environments where SIM is used for critical infrastructure monitoring.
The operational impact of this vulnerability extends beyond simple unauthorized access, as it enables attackers to perform administrative functions that could compromise entire server infrastructures managed by SIM. An attacker who successfully exploits this vulnerability could potentially modify system configurations, create or delete users, access sensitive monitoring data, or even disable critical monitoring capabilities. The vulnerability affects organizations that rely on SIM for their server management and monitoring operations, potentially leading to complete loss of visibility into their infrastructure. This weakness particularly threatens enterprise environments where SIM is used for managing multiple servers and where administrative privileges are concentrated. The impact is amplified because SIM typically runs with elevated privileges and maintains access to critical system information, making successful exploitation equivalent to gaining administrative control over the monitored infrastructure. Organizations using older versions of SIM without proper network segmentation or additional security controls face significant risk from this vulnerability.
Mitigation strategies for CVE-2011-1543 primarily focus on immediate software updates and implementation of additional security controls. Organizations should prioritize upgrading to HP Systems Insight Manager version 6.3 or later, which includes proper CSRF protection mechanisms and session management improvements. Network segmentation should be implemented to limit access to SIM management interfaces to trusted administrative networks only. Additional protective measures include implementing web application firewalls, deploying proper input validation, and establishing robust monitoring for suspicious administrative activities. Security teams should also consider implementing multi-factor authentication for SIM administrative access and regularly audit user permissions to ensure least privilege access. The vulnerability aligns with CWE-352, which specifically addresses cross-site request forgery weaknesses in web applications. From an ATT&CK framework perspective, this vulnerability maps to technique T1566 for social engineering and T1078 for valid accounts usage, potentially enabling lateral movement and persistence within compromised environments. Organizations should also implement regular vulnerability assessments and penetration testing to identify similar weaknesses in their monitoring infrastructure and ensure comprehensive protection against similar attack vectors.