CVE-2013-3409 in Prime Central for Hosted Collaboration Solution
Summary
by MITRE
The portal in Cisco Prime Central for Hosted Collaboration Solution (HCS) places cleartext credentials in temporary files, which allows local users to obtain sensitive information by leveraging weak file permissions to read these files, aka Bug IDs CSCuh33735 and CSCuh34230.
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Analysis
by VulDB Data Team • 03/01/2019
The vulnerability identified as CVE-2013-3409 resides within Cisco Prime Central for Hosted Collaboration Solution HCS, representing a critical security flaw that exposes sensitive authentication credentials through improper temporary file handling. This issue manifests when the portal component creates temporary files containing cleartext passwords and authentication tokens, which are subsequently stored on the filesystem with insufficient access controls. The flaw specifically affects local users who can exploit weak file permissions to directly read these temporary files and extract confidential information. The vulnerability was tracked under two bug IDs CSCuh33735 and CSCuh34230, indicating the severity and scope of the issue within Cisco's internal tracking systems. This type of vulnerability directly violates fundamental security principles by storing sensitive data in an easily accessible format without proper encryption or access restriction mechanisms.
The technical implementation of this vulnerability stems from the portal's design failure to properly secure temporary credential storage during authentication processes. When users authenticate through the Cisco Prime Central HCS portal, the system generates temporary files containing cleartext credentials that should be protected but instead are created with default file permissions that allow unauthorized local access. These temporary files typically contain username and password information in plain text format, making them highly valuable to attackers who can easily extract this information. The weak file permissions often default to world-readable or group-readable modes, allowing any local user account to access these sensitive files. This flaw represents a classic case of insufficient privilege separation and inadequate temporary file management, where the system fails to implement proper security controls for handling sensitive data during its temporary existence. The vulnerability operates at the operating system level where file permission controls are insufficiently enforced, creating an attack surface that bypasses higher-level security mechanisms.
The operational impact of this vulnerability extends beyond simple credential theft, as it provides attackers with persistent access to the targeted system and potentially enables further lateral movement within the network. Local users who can read these temporary files gain access to authentication credentials that may grant them elevated privileges or access to additional systems within the organization's infrastructure. The exposure of cleartext credentials creates a significant risk for organizations using Cisco Prime Central for HCS, as these credentials can be used for unauthorized access to network resources, potentially leading to complete system compromise. Attackers can leverage this vulnerability to maintain persistence within the environment and escalate privileges, as the extracted credentials often provide access to administrative functions within the Cisco HCS solution. The vulnerability also increases the risk of credential reuse attacks where stolen credentials are used against other systems within the same organization that may share similar authentication mechanisms. This flaw essentially undermines the security of the entire authentication infrastructure by creating a backdoor through which unauthorized access can be achieved.
Organizations should implement immediate mitigations including enforcing strict file permission controls on temporary file directories, implementing proper credential handling mechanisms that avoid cleartext storage, and conducting thorough security audits of all temporary file creation processes. The recommended approach involves configuring temporary file directories with restrictive permissions such as 700 (read, write, execute for owner only) and ensuring that no temporary files containing sensitive information are created with world-readable or group-readable permissions. System administrators should also implement monitoring solutions to detect unauthorized access attempts to temporary file locations and establish regular auditing procedures to identify any potential exploitation of this vulnerability. Additionally, organizations should consider implementing credential rotation mechanisms and ensure that all temporary files are properly deleted after use to minimize the window of opportunity for exploitation. The vulnerability aligns with CWE-312 (Cleartext Storage of Sensitive Information) and CWE-276 (Incorrect Permission Assignment) categories, while also mapping to ATT&CK techniques such as credential access and privilege escalation. Organizations must also consider the broader context of this vulnerability within their overall security posture, as it represents a failure in proper secure coding practices and temporary file management that could indicate similar issues in other components of the system.