CVE-2015-4907 in Solaris
Summary
by MITRE
Unspecified vulnerability in Oracle Sun Solaris 11.2 allows local users to affect confidentiality, integrity, and availability via unknown vectors related to Solaris Kernel Zones, a different vulnerability than CVE-2015-4820.
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Analysis
by VulDB Data Team • 11/24/2024
The vulnerability identified as CVE-2015-4907 represents a significant security flaw within Oracle Sun Solaris 11.2 operating system, specifically affecting the Solaris Kernel Zones implementation. This issue falls under the broader category of kernel-level vulnerabilities that can have far-reaching consequences for system security and stability. The vulnerability exists within the kernel zones subsystem, which is responsible for creating isolated execution environments within the Solaris operating system, allowing multiple users or applications to operate in separate virtualized spaces while sharing the same kernel.
The technical nature of this vulnerability stems from insufficient access controls and potential privilege escalation mechanisms within the kernel zones implementation. While the exact vector remains unspecified, the classification as affecting confidentiality, integrity, and availability indicates a critical weakness that could be exploited by local attackers to gain unauthorized access to system resources. The vulnerability is distinct from CVE-2015-4820, suggesting that this represents a separate attack surface within the same software component, potentially involving different code paths or privilege boundaries within the kernel zones architecture. This type of vulnerability typically involves improper validation of system calls or insufficient sandboxing mechanisms that allow processes within one zone to potentially access or manipulate resources belonging to other zones or the host system.
From an operational perspective, local users who can exploit this vulnerability gain access to a wide range of system resources that should normally be isolated within kernel zones. The impact extends across all three core security principles: confidentiality is compromised when unauthorized access to sensitive data or system information is possible, integrity suffers when system modifications or data corruption can occur through zone boundary violations, and availability is threatened when system resources can be manipulated or destroyed through zone escape techniques. The implications are particularly severe in multi-tenant environments where kernel zones are used to isolate different users or applications, as a successful exploitation could allow one user to compromise the security of other users or the entire system.
The vulnerability aligns with CWE-269, which addresses privilege escalation issues in kernel components, and potentially CWE-276, which covers improper privileges for system resources. From an attacker's perspective, this vulnerability could map to multiple ATT&CK techniques including privilege escalation, defense evasion, and persistence mechanisms. Organizations using Solaris 11.2 should implement immediate mitigations including applying the latest Oracle security patches, disabling unnecessary kernel zone functionality, and implementing strict access controls for local users. Network segmentation and monitoring for unusual zone behavior can help detect potential exploitation attempts, while regular security assessments of kernel zone configurations should be conducted to identify additional vulnerabilities that may exist within the system's virtualization infrastructure.