CVE-2014-1685 in Zabbix
Summary
by MITRE
The Frontend in Zabbix before 1.8.20rc2, 2.0.x before 2.0.11rc2, and 2.2.x before 2.2.2rc1 allows remote "Zabbix Admin" users to modify the media of arbitrary users via unspecified vectors.
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Analysis
by VulDB Data Team • 03/21/2022
The vulnerability identified as CVE-2014-1685 affects the Zabbix monitoring platform's frontend component across multiple version ranges, specifically impacting versions prior to 1.8.20rc2, 2.0.11rc2, and 2.2.2rc1. This represents a critical access control flaw that enables authenticated remote attackers with the Zabbix Admin role to manipulate user media configurations without proper authorization. The issue stems from insufficient input validation and privilege escalation mechanisms within the user management subsystem of the Zabbix frontend interface.
The technical flaw manifests through unspecified vectors that allow malicious administrators to modify media settings for any user account within the system. This vulnerability falls under the CWE-284 access control weakness category, specifically addressing improper access control where the system fails to properly validate user permissions when processing media modification requests. The flaw enables attackers to potentially disrupt communication channels, alter notification preferences, or redirect alerts to unauthorized recipients, fundamentally compromising the integrity of the system's user management and notification infrastructure.
Operationally, this vulnerability presents significant risks to organizations relying on Zabbix for critical infrastructure monitoring. Attackers with legitimate Zabbix Admin credentials can exploit this weakness to gain unauthorized control over user communication channels, potentially leading to denial of service scenarios where critical alerts are suppressed or redirected. The impact extends beyond simple media configuration changes as it can affect system availability and incident response capabilities, particularly in environments where timely notifications are crucial for maintaining operational security. This vulnerability directly maps to ATT&CK technique T1078 legitimate credentials, where attackers leverage valid administrative privileges to escalate their influence within the monitoring ecosystem.
Mitigation strategies for CVE-2014-1685 require immediate deployment of patched versions of Zabbix software, specifically upgrading to versions 1.8.20rc2, 2.0.11rc2, or 2.2.2rc1 where the vulnerability has been addressed. Organizations should implement additional security controls including role-based access control reviews, monitoring of administrative activities, and regular auditing of user media configurations. Network segmentation and least privilege principles should be enforced to limit the scope of potential exploitation, while implementing multi-factor authentication for administrative accounts can provide additional defense layers. Security teams should also establish automated monitoring for unauthorized media modification attempts and maintain comprehensive logging of administrative activities to detect potential exploitation attempts.