CVE-2011-5078 in M-Business Anywhere
Summary
by MITRE
The web administration interface in the server in Sybase M-Business Anywhere 6.7 before ESD# 3 and 7.0 before ESD# 7 does not require admin authentication for unspecified scripts, which allows remote authenticated users to list or delete user accounts, modify passwords, or read log files via HTTP requests, aka Bug IDs 678497 and 678499.
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Analysis
by VulDB Data Team • 01/30/2018
The vulnerability described in CVE-2011-5078 represents a critical authentication bypass flaw within the web administration interface of Sybase M-Business Anywhere server versions 6.7 prior to ESD#3 and 7.0 prior to ESD#7. This issue stems from insufficient access controls implemented in the server's web interface, specifically affecting unspecified scripts that should have required administrative authentication. The flaw allows remote authenticated users to perform sensitive operations without proper authorization, creating a significant security risk for organizations relying on this database management system. The vulnerability affects the core administrative functionality of the system and demonstrates poor implementation of access control mechanisms that should have been enforced at the application layer.
The technical nature of this vulnerability falls under the category of insufficient authentication checks and weak access control implementation. When users authenticate to the system, the web administration interface fails to properly validate whether the authenticated user possesses the necessary administrative privileges before executing sensitive operations. This authentication bypass allows attackers who have gained access to any user account within the system to escalate their privileges and perform administrative functions. The specific scripts affected are not detailed in the CVE description, but they encompass critical administrative operations including user account management, password modification, and log file access. This represents a classic case of privilege escalation through inadequate authorization checks, where the system assumes that any authenticated user can perform administrative tasks.
The operational impact of this vulnerability is severe and far-reaching for organizations using affected Sybase M-Business Anywhere versions. Remote authenticated users can leverage this flaw to enumerate user accounts, effectively creating a comprehensive list of system users and their associated privileges. The ability to delete user accounts can disrupt legitimate user access and potentially cause denial of service conditions. Password modification capabilities allow attackers to gain persistent access to accounts, while log file reading can expose sensitive system information, configuration details, and potentially confidential data. The vulnerability essentially provides a backdoor for attackers to assume complete administrative control over the system without requiring legitimate administrative credentials, making it particularly dangerous in enterprise environments where data security is paramount.
Organizations affected by this vulnerability should immediately implement mitigation strategies to address the authentication bypass issue. The primary recommended action is to upgrade to the patched versions of Sybase M-Business Anywhere, specifically versions 6.7 ESD#3 and 7.0 ESD#7, which contain the necessary security fixes. Network segmentation and firewall rules should be implemented to restrict access to the web administration interface to only trusted administrative networks and IP addresses. Additional mitigations include implementing strong authentication mechanisms, regularly monitoring access logs for suspicious activities, and conducting thorough security audits of the administration interface. From a compliance perspective, this vulnerability would likely violate security standards such as those outlined in iso/iec 27001 and nist cybersecurity framework, particularly concerning access control and privilege management requirements. The flaw also aligns with attack patterns documented in the mitre att&ck framework under privilege escalation and credential access techniques, where adversaries attempt to gain elevated privileges through authentication bypass methods. Organizations should also consider implementing intrusion detection systems to monitor for unusual administrative activities that might indicate exploitation of this vulnerability.