CVE-2014-0657 in Unified Communications Manager
Summary
by MITRE
The administration portal in Cisco Unified Communications Manager (Unified CM) 9.1(1) and earlier does not properly handle role restrictions, which allows remote authenticated users to bypass role-based access control via multiple visits to a forbidden portal URL, aka Bug ID CSCuj83540.
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Analysis
by VulDB Data Team • 01/18/2022
The vulnerability identified as CVE-2014-0657 affects Cisco Unified Communications Manager version 9.1(1) and earlier releases, specifically targeting the administration portal's role-based access control mechanisms. This issue represents a critical authorization flaw that undermines the fundamental security model of the unified communications platform. The vulnerability stems from improper handling of role restrictions within the administrative interface, creating a pathway for malicious actors to escalate their privileges through repeated access attempts to restricted portal URLs. The flaw enables remote authenticated users to bypass the intended access controls that should limit administrative functions based on user roles and permissions, effectively allowing unauthorized access to privileged administrative features.
The technical implementation of this vulnerability exploits the weakness in the authentication and authorization flow within the Cisco Unified Communications Manager administration portal. When users attempt to access restricted administrative functions, the system should validate their roles and permissions before granting access. However, the flawed implementation allows attackers to make multiple requests to forbidden URLs, potentially bypassing the role restriction checks through a technique known as privilege escalation via repeated access attempts. This behavior aligns with CWE-285, which describes improper authorization within software systems, and demonstrates how insufficient input validation and access control enforcement can lead to security breaches. The vulnerability's remote nature means that attackers do not require physical access to the system or local network presence, making it particularly dangerous in enterprise environments where administrative access can lead to complete system compromise.
The operational impact of CVE-2014-0657 is severe and far-reaching within organizations relying on Cisco Unified Communications Manager for their voice and collaboration infrastructure. Successful exploitation of this vulnerability could enable attackers to gain unauthorized access to critical administrative functions such as user management, system configuration changes, call routing modifications, and potentially access to sensitive communication data. The bypass of role-based access control means that even users with limited privileges could escalate their access to full administrative capabilities, creating opportunities for data exfiltration, service disruption, and system compromise. This vulnerability directly impacts the CIA triad, specifically compromising confidentiality through unauthorized data access, integrity through potential system configuration changes, and availability through possible service disruption. Organizations using affected versions of Cisco Unified Communications Manager face significant risk of unauthorized access to their communication infrastructure, which could result in regulatory compliance violations, financial losses, and reputational damage.
Organizations should immediately implement mitigations including applying the latest Cisco security patches and updates to resolve the vulnerability in Cisco Unified Communications Manager 9.1(1) and earlier versions. The recommended approach involves upgrading to a patched version of the software that properly enforces role-based access controls and implements robust authentication mechanisms. Network segmentation and access controls should be enhanced to limit administrative access to the Unified Communications Manager portal, reducing the attack surface and potential impact of exploitation. Security monitoring should be strengthened to detect unusual access patterns or multiple failed access attempts that might indicate exploitation attempts. Additionally, organizations should conduct thorough security assessments of their communication infrastructure to identify any other potential access control vulnerabilities and ensure that administrative access is properly audited and logged. The remediation process should include comprehensive testing of updated systems to ensure that the patch does not introduce compatibility issues with existing communication services while maintaining the integrity of the access control mechanisms. This vulnerability underscores the importance of maintaining current security patches and implementing proper access control measures within enterprise communication systems, as described in the ATT&CK framework under privilege escalation techniques and access control bypass methods.