CVE-2013-1977 in devstack
Summary
by MITRE
OpenStack devstack uses world-readable permissions for keystone.conf, which allows local users to obtain sensitive information such as the LDAP password and admin_token secret by reading the file.
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Analysis
by VulDB Data Team • 03/16/2019
The vulnerability identified as CVE-2013-1977 resides within the OpenStack devstack deployment tooling, specifically addressing improper file permission handling during the installation process. This flaw manifests when devstack creates the keystone.conf configuration file with world-readable permissions, creating an exploitable condition that compromises the security posture of the entire OpenStack environment. The issue stems from the tool's default behavior of setting file permissions that allow any local user on the system to read the configuration file contents, thereby exposing critical authentication credentials and administrative secrets.
The technical implementation of this vulnerability involves the devstack provisioning scripts failing to properly secure the keystone.conf file through appropriate access control mechanisms. When the configuration file contains sensitive information such as LDAP authentication credentials and admin_token secrets, the world-readable permissions effectively nullify any security controls that might otherwise protect these credentials from unauthorized access. This represents a classic case of inadequate privilege separation and file system permission management that violates fundamental security principles.
From an operational impact perspective, this vulnerability creates a significant risk for local users who may gain access to the system through various attack vectors such as compromised user accounts, insider threats, or privilege escalation exploits. The exposure of LDAP passwords allows attackers to potentially gain access to external directory services that may contain additional user credentials, while the admin_token secret provides direct administrative access to the Keystone identity service without requiring additional authentication factors. This creates a potential attack path that could lead to complete system compromise and unauthorized access to all OpenStack resources managed by the affected Keystone service.
The vulnerability aligns with CWE-732: Incorrect Permission Assignment for Critical Resource, which specifically addresses situations where critical system resources are assigned improper access permissions. Additionally, this issue maps to several ATT&CK techniques including T1003: Credential Dumping and T1078: Valid Accounts, as it provides attackers with readily available credentials that can be used for further system exploitation and persistence. The weakness also reflects poor security hygiene practices commonly associated with development and testing environments where security considerations may be deprioritized during initial setup phases.
Mitigation strategies for CVE-2013-1977 should focus on implementing proper file permission controls during the devstack installation process. The most direct approach involves modifying the devstack scripts to set restrictive permissions on the keystone.conf file, typically using chmod 600 or similar restrictive settings that limit access to the file owner only. System administrators should also implement regular security audits to verify that configuration files maintain appropriate permissions and consider implementing automated monitoring solutions that can detect and alert on unauthorized permission changes to sensitive files. Organizations should also ensure that development environments are properly isolated and that access controls are maintained throughout the deployment lifecycle to prevent similar issues from occurring in production environments where such vulnerabilities could have more severe consequences.