CVE-2013-6443 in CloudForms 3.0 Management Engine
Summary
by MITRE
CloudForms 3.0 Management Engine before 5.2.1.6 allows remote attackers to bypass the Ruby on Rails protect_from_forgery mechanism and conduct cross-site request forgery (CSRF) attacks via a destructive action in a request.
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Analysis
by VulDB Data Team • 01/31/2022
The vulnerability described in CVE-2013-6443 represents a critical security flaw in CloudForms 3.0 Management Engine versions prior to 5.2.1.6 that specifically targets the Ruby on Rails framework's built-in CSRF protection mechanisms. This weakness enables remote attackers to craft malicious requests that can bypass the application's security controls designed to prevent unauthorized actions from being executed on behalf of authenticated users. The flaw occurs when the application fails to properly validate request authenticity, creating an avenue for attackers to manipulate the application's behavior through carefully constructed HTTP requests that appear legitimate to the server.
The technical implementation of this vulnerability stems from the application's improper handling of CSRF tokens within the Ruby on Rails protect_from_forgery mechanism. When CloudForms processes requests, it fails to adequately validate the authenticity of incoming requests, particularly when these requests involve destructive actions such as modifying system configurations, deleting resources, or executing administrative functions. This allows attackers to exploit the application's trust in legitimate user sessions and inject malicious requests that can execute unintended operations with elevated privileges. The vulnerability specifically affects the validation logic that should ensure requests originate from authenticated users and contain valid anti-forgery tokens, which are fundamental components of web application security frameworks.
The operational impact of this vulnerability extends beyond simple data theft or modification, as it enables full CSRF attacks that can compromise the integrity and availability of the CloudForms management environment. Attackers can leverage this weakness to perform unauthorized administrative actions, potentially leading to complete system compromise, data loss, or service disruption. The remote nature of the attack means that threat actors can exploit this vulnerability from anywhere on the internet without requiring physical access to the network or system. This creates a significant risk for organizations that rely on CloudForms for critical infrastructure management, as unauthorized users could gain the ability to manipulate virtual environments, change system configurations, or execute destructive operations that could impact business continuity and security posture.
Organizations should immediately implement mitigations including updating to CloudForms 5.2.1.6 or later versions that contain the patched CSRF protection mechanisms. Additional defensive measures include implementing proper input validation, ensuring robust session management, and deploying web application firewalls that can detect and block suspicious request patterns. The vulnerability aligns with CWE-352, which specifically addresses Cross-Site Request Forgery, and represents a clear violation of the principle of least privilege in web application security. From an ATT&CK framework perspective, this vulnerability maps to T1213 - Data from Information Repositories and T1078 - Valid Accounts, as it allows attackers to leverage legitimate user sessions to perform unauthorized actions. Organizations should also conduct thorough security assessments of their CloudForms deployments to identify any additional vulnerabilities that may exist in related components or integrated systems that could compound the risk of exploitation.