CVE-2015-1841 in Enterprise Virtualization Manager
Summary
by MITRE
The Web Admin interface in Red Hat Enterprise Virtualization Manager (RHEV-M) allows local users to bypass the timeout function by selecting a VM in the VM grid view.
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Analysis
by VulDB Data Team • 06/14/2022
The vulnerability identified as CVE-2015-1841 affects the Red Hat Enterprise Virtualization Manager (RHEV-M) Web Admin interface, presenting a significant security flaw that undermines the system's authentication and session management mechanisms. This issue specifically targets the timeout functionality that is designed to protect against unauthorized access during inactive sessions. The vulnerability resides within the web administration component of the virtualization management platform, which serves as the primary interface for administrators to manage virtual machine deployments and configurations.
The technical flaw manifests through a specific interaction pattern within the VM grid view interface where local users can manipulate the display and selection mechanisms to circumvent the intended timeout restrictions. When a user selects a virtual machine from the grid view, the system fails to properly validate the session state and authentication status, allowing continued access beyond the configured timeout period. This bypass occurs because the interface does not properly enforce session expiration checks during the VM selection process, creating a window of opportunity for unauthorized access. The vulnerability is classified as a session management weakness that directly impacts the principle of least privilege and proper access control enforcement.
From an operational perspective, this vulnerability significantly increases the attack surface for local users who may have legitimate access to the RHEV-M interface but could exploit this flaw to maintain prolonged access to the system. The impact extends beyond simple unauthorized access as it undermines the security controls that protect sensitive virtualization environments and their associated resources. Administrators managing critical virtual infrastructure may find their systems vulnerable to prolonged unauthorized access, potentially leading to data compromise, system modification, or disruption of virtual machine operations. The vulnerability particularly affects environments where multiple administrators share the same physical or virtual machines, increasing the risk of insider threats or compromised accounts.
The security implications of this vulnerability align with CWE-613, which addresses insufficient session expiration, and can be mapped to ATT&CK technique T1566 for credential access and T1078 for valid accounts. Organizations utilizing RHEV-M should implement immediate mitigations including applying the vendor-provided security patches, reviewing and strengthening session management policies, and implementing additional monitoring controls to detect anomalous access patterns. Network segmentation and least privilege access controls should be enforced to minimize the potential impact of successful exploitation. The vulnerability demonstrates the importance of comprehensive security testing for web interfaces and the need for robust session management implementations in enterprise virtualization platforms. Regular security assessments and penetration testing should be conducted to identify similar session management weaknesses that could compromise the overall security posture of virtualization environments.