CVE-2014-2390 in Security Manager
Summary
by MITRE
Cross-site request forgery (CSRF) vulnerability in the User Management module in McAfee Network Security Manager (NSM) before 6.1.15.39 7.1.5.x before 7.1.5.15, 7.1.15.x before 7.1.15.7, 7.5.x before 7.5.5.9, and 8.x before 8.1.7.3 allows remote attackers to hijack the authentication of users for requests that modify user accounts via unspecified vectors.
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Analysis
by VulDB Data Team • 02/10/2022
The CVE-2014-2390 vulnerability represents a critical cross-site request forgery flaw within McAfee Network Security Manager's User Management module, affecting multiple version ranges across different major releases. This vulnerability resides in the web-based administrative interface of the security appliance, creating a significant risk for organizations relying on McAfee NSM for network security operations. The flaw enables remote attackers to exploit the authentication mechanisms of legitimate users, potentially allowing unauthorized modifications to user accounts and administrative privileges. The vulnerability's presence in the User Management module specifically targets the authentication and authorization processes that govern user account modifications, making it particularly dangerous for security administrators who depend on proper access controls.
The technical implementation of this CSRF vulnerability stems from inadequate validation of request origins and lack of proper anti-CSRF token mechanisms within the web interface. Attackers can craft malicious requests that appear to originate from authenticated users, leveraging the trust relationship between the web application and legitimate users. The unspecified vectors mentioned in the description suggest that the vulnerability could be exploited through various attack methods including email-based social engineering, compromised websites, or malicious embedded content that triggers unintended administrative actions. This weakness directly violates the principle of least privilege and authentication integrity, as described in CWE-352, where the application fails to validate that requests originate from legitimate sources. The vulnerability essentially allows attackers to perform unauthorized administrative actions without possessing valid credentials, creating a path for privilege escalation and unauthorized access to sensitive network security configurations.
The operational impact of this vulnerability extends beyond simple account modification, as it compromises the fundamental security model of the McAfee Network Security Manager platform. Organizations using affected versions face potential unauthorized access to critical network security controls, including user account management, access privilege modifications, and potentially sensitive configuration changes. The attack surface is particularly concerning because the User Management module typically requires elevated privileges, meaning successful exploitation could lead to complete administrative control over the security appliance. This vulnerability aligns with ATT&CK technique T1566, specifically targeting credential access through social engineering and web-based attacks. The implications are severe for network security operations, as compromising the user management functionality could allow attackers to create persistent backdoors, disable security features, or manipulate access controls for other network resources managed by the appliance.
Organizations should immediately implement comprehensive mitigation strategies to address this vulnerability across all affected versions of McAfee Network Security Manager. The primary recommendation involves applying the vendor-provided security patches and updates that address the CSRF implementation flaws in the User Management module. Network segmentation and firewall rules should be implemented to restrict access to the administrative web interface to trusted administrative networks only, reducing the attack surface available to remote attackers. Additionally, organizations should consider implementing additional authentication controls such as multi-factor authentication for administrative access, regular security audits of user account modifications, and monitoring for unusual administrative activities. The vulnerability demonstrates the critical importance of proper CSRF protection mechanisms, as outlined in OWASP Top 10 2017 category A05, where insecure design and implementation of web application security controls can lead to complete system compromise. Regular security assessments and vulnerability scanning should be conducted to identify any similar implementation flaws in other web-based administrative interfaces within the organization's security infrastructure.