CVE-2011-4143 in enVision
Summary
by MITRE
EMC RSA enVision 4.0 before SP4 P5 and 4.1 before P3 allows remote attackers to obtain sensitive information about environment variables in the web system via unspecified vectors.
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Analysis
by VulDB Data Team • 02/14/2019
The vulnerability identified as CVE-2011-4143 affects EMC RSA enVision versions 4.0 before SP4 P5 and 4.1 before P3, representing a significant information disclosure weakness within the web-based management interface of this security monitoring platform. This issue falls under the category of information exposure vulnerabilities that can provide attackers with sensitive system details that should remain confidential. The vulnerability manifests through unspecified vectors that allow remote attackers to extract environment variable information from the web system, potentially exposing critical system configuration data. Environment variables often contain sensitive information including database connection strings, API keys, and other system configuration parameters that could be leveraged for further exploitation.
From a technical perspective, this vulnerability represents a failure in proper input validation and output sanitization within the web application layer of EMC RSA enVision. The unspecified vectors suggest that the vulnerability may be present in multiple attack surfaces including but not limited to parameter handling, error message generation, or direct system information exposure mechanisms. The flaw allows an unauthenticated remote attacker to access environment variables that typically should be restricted to authorized administrative users or system processes. This type of information disclosure can be categorized as a CWE-200 - Information Exposure, which is a fundamental security weakness that exposes system internals to potential attackers. The vulnerability directly impacts the principle of least privilege by allowing unauthorized access to system configuration details that should remain hidden from external parties.
The operational impact of this vulnerability extends beyond simple information disclosure, as the leaked environment variables could contain critical system credentials, database connection details, or other sensitive configuration parameters that could be exploited for privilege escalation or lateral movement within the network. Attackers could potentially use the disclosed information to craft more sophisticated attacks against the system or to target other systems that share similar configuration parameters. The vulnerability affects the confidentiality aspect of the CIA triad by exposing system internals that should remain protected. This weakness could be leveraged as an initial foothold in a broader attack chain, particularly when combined with other vulnerabilities or reconnaissance activities. The impact is amplified because the vulnerability affects multiple versions of the software, indicating a persistent flaw in the application architecture that was not properly addressed in the affected releases.
Mitigation strategies for this vulnerability should include immediate deployment of available patches from EMC RSA that address the information disclosure issue in the web interface. Organizations should implement network segmentation and access controls to limit exposure of the affected system to untrusted networks. The principle of least privilege should be enforced by restricting access to the web interface to authorized personnel only, and implementing proper authentication mechanisms. Security monitoring should be enhanced to detect unusual access patterns or attempts to query system information that could indicate exploitation attempts. Additionally, regular security assessments should be conducted to identify similar information disclosure vulnerabilities in other system components. The remediation process should include comprehensive testing to ensure that environment variables are properly sanitized and that no unintended information leakage occurs through the web interface. Organizations should also consider implementing web application firewalls to help detect and prevent exploitation attempts targeting this type of vulnerability, which aligns with ATT&CK technique T1071.004 - Application Layer Protocol: DNS to prevent potential reconnaissance activities that could lead to further exploitation.