CVE-2014-3101 in Rational ClearCase
Summary
by MITRE
The login form in the Web component in IBM Rational ClearQuest 7.1 before 7.1.2.15, 8.0.0 before 8.0.0.12, and 8.0.1 before 8.0.1.5 does not insert a delay after a failed authentication attempt, which makes it easier for remote attackers to obtain access via a brute-force attack.
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Analysis
by VulDB Data Team • 03/29/2022
The vulnerability identified as CVE-2014-3101 affects the authentication mechanism within IBM Rational ClearQuest web components across multiple versions including 7.1.2.15, 8.0.0.12, and 8.0.1.5. This weakness resides in the login form implementation where the system fails to implement proper rate limiting or delay mechanisms following unsuccessful authentication attempts. The absence of such protective measures creates a significant security risk that directly enables automated brute-force attacks against the system's authentication interface.
This vulnerability represents a classic implementation flaw that falls under the category of insufficient account lockout or delay mechanisms, which aligns with CWE-307 - Improper Restriction of Excessive Authentication Attempts. The technical flaw manifests as the web component's failure to introduce any form of temporal delay between failed login attempts, allowing attackers to rapidly submit multiple authentication requests without meaningful backoff periods. This design oversight eliminates the basic defense mechanism that would normally slow down automated attack vectors through simple rate limiting.
The operational impact of this vulnerability extends beyond simple credential guessing attacks, as it fundamentally weakens the system's resistance to automated exploitation. Attackers can leverage this weakness to conduct systematic brute-force campaigns targeting user credentials, potentially leading to unauthorized system access and data compromise. The vulnerability affects the core authentication flow of the ClearQuest web interface, making it particularly dangerous as it impacts all users attempting to access the system through the web-based portal rather than requiring physical or network-level access to the underlying application servers.
From a threat modeling perspective, this vulnerability aligns with several ATT&CK techniques including T1110 - Brute Force and T1078 - Valid Accounts, as it enables attackers to systematically discover valid credentials through automated means. The lack of defensive measures against rapid authentication attempts creates a window of opportunity for attackers to exploit weak or commonly used passwords, potentially leading to full system compromise. Organizations utilizing these affected versions of IBM Rational ClearQuest face increased risk of unauthorized access, data theft, and potential lateral movement within their network infrastructure.
The recommended mitigations for this vulnerability include immediate patching to the affected versions, implementing proper authentication rate limiting mechanisms, and configuring account lockout policies to prevent automated credential guessing attacks. Organizations should also consider implementing additional security controls such as multi-factor authentication, network-based access controls, and monitoring systems to detect unusual authentication patterns. The vulnerability demonstrates the critical importance of implementing proper defensive measures at all levels of authentication systems, as even basic protections like delay mechanisms can significantly reduce the effectiveness of automated attack vectors.