CVE-2012-1518 in Player
Summary
by MITRE
VMware Workstation 8.x before 8.0.2, VMware Player 4.x before 4.0.2, VMware Fusion 4.x before 4.1.2, VMware ESXi 3.5 though 5.0, and VMware ESX 3.5 through 4.1 use an incorrect ACL for the VMware Tools folder, which allows guest OS users to gain guest OS privileges via unspecified vectors.
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Analysis
by VulDB Data Team • 01/02/2025
This vulnerability affects multiple VMware virtualization products including Workstation, Player, Fusion, ESXi, and ESX versions, creating a critical access control flaw that undermines the security boundaries between guest operating systems and host environments. The issue stems from improper access control list implementation for the VMware Tools folder, which is a critical component that facilitates communication between guest and host systems. When guest operating system users encounter an incorrectly configured access control list, they can exploit this weakness to escalate their privileges within the guest environment, effectively bypassing the isolation mechanisms that virtualization platforms are designed to maintain.
The technical flaw manifests as a privilege escalation vulnerability where attackers can leverage the misconfigured access control list to execute unauthorized operations within the guest OS. This represents a fundamental breakdown in the virtualization security model, as the VMware Tools folder typically requires elevated privileges to access and modify its contents. The unspecified vectors suggest that the attack surface encompasses multiple potential exploitation paths, potentially including file system manipulation, process injection, or direct registry modifications that could be leveraged to achieve unauthorized privilege elevation. This vulnerability directly maps to CWE-284, which addresses improper access control in software systems, specifically highlighting the failure to properly enforce access restrictions on critical system components.
The operational impact of this vulnerability extends beyond simple privilege escalation, as it enables attackers to potentially gain unauthorized access to sensitive guest OS resources and data. When guest users can escalate privileges, they may access other virtual machines running on the same host, potentially leading to cross-vm attacks or data exfiltration. The vulnerability is particularly concerning in multi-tenant environments where isolation between different guest operating systems is paramount for security. Attackers could leverage this weakness to establish persistent access within compromised guest environments, potentially using it as a foothold for further attacks against the host system or other virtual machines in the same infrastructure, aligning with ATT&CK technique T1059 for command and control through privilege escalation.
Organizations should immediately implement mitigations including updating to the patched versions of all affected VMware products, specifically versions 8.0.2, 4.0.2, 4.1.2, and their respective updated releases. System administrators should also conduct thorough security assessments of virtual environments to identify and remediate any additional access control misconfigurations that may exist. The patching process should include verification that the access control lists for VMware Tools folders are properly configured with appropriate permissions. Network segmentation and monitoring solutions should be enhanced to detect any suspicious privilege escalation activities within virtual environments, as this vulnerability may be exploited in conjunction with other attack vectors to achieve more comprehensive compromise of virtualized infrastructure.