CVE-2013-0168 in Enterprise Virtualization Manager
Summary
by MITRE
The MoveDisk command in Red Hat Enterprise Virtualization Manager (RHEV-M) 3.1 and earlier does not properly check permissions on storage domains, which allows remote authenticated storage admins to cause a denial of service (free space consumption of other storage domains) via unspecified vectors.
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Analysis
by VulDB Data Team • 12/30/2021
The vulnerability identified as CVE-2013-0168 affects Red Hat Enterprise Virtualization Manager version 3.1 and earlier, specifically targeting the MoveDisk command functionality. This issue represents a critical permission bypass flaw that enables authenticated storage administrators to manipulate storage domain resources in unintended ways. The vulnerability stems from insufficient validation of access controls during disk movement operations, creating a pathway for malicious actors to exploit the system's storage management mechanisms.
The technical flaw manifests in the inadequate permission checking implementation within the MoveDisk command processing logic. When storage administrators execute disk movement operations, the system fails to properly validate whether the administrator possesses appropriate authorization to access or modify the target storage domain. This weakness allows an authenticated user to manipulate disk movement parameters in such a way that causes excessive consumption of free space within other storage domains, effectively creating a resource exhaustion scenario that impacts system availability and performance.
From an operational perspective, this vulnerability presents significant risks to virtualization environments as it enables denial of service conditions that can severely impact storage availability. The attack vector allows storage administrators to consume free space in other storage domains without proper authorization, potentially leading to cascading failures where legitimate storage operations become impossible due to space exhaustion. This type of attack can result in extended downtime for virtualized applications and services that depend on the affected storage infrastructure.
The impact of this vulnerability aligns with CWE-284, which addresses improper access control issues in software systems. The flaw demonstrates inadequate authorization checking mechanisms that permit unauthorized resource consumption, creating a scenario where legitimate system operations are disrupted. From an attack framework perspective, this vulnerability maps to ATT&CK technique T1499.001, which covers resource exhaustion via storage consumption, and T1078.002, which addresses valid accounts for lateral movement and privilege escalation within storage management contexts.
Effective mitigation strategies for CVE-2013-0168 require immediate implementation of patches provided by Red Hat, as well as enhanced monitoring of storage domain access patterns and disk movement operations. Organizations should implement strict access control policies that enforce proper authorization checks before allowing any storage domain manipulation operations. Additionally, regular security assessments should validate that permission checking mechanisms are properly enforced throughout the virtualization management system. The vulnerability underscores the importance of maintaining up-to-date virtualization management software and implementing comprehensive monitoring solutions to detect anomalous storage consumption patterns that may indicate exploitation attempts.