CVE-2015-5537 in RuggedCom ROS
Summary
by MITRE
The SSL layer of the HTTPS service in Siemens RuggedCom ROS before 4.2.0 and ROX II does not properly implement CBC padding, which makes it easier for man-in-the-middle attackers to obtain cleartext data via a padding-oracle attack, a different vulnerability than CVE-2014-3566.
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Analysis
by VulDB Data Team • 06/07/2022
The vulnerability identified as CVE-2015-5537 affects the SSL implementation within the HTTPS service of Siemens RuggedCom ROS operating systems prior to version 4.2.0 and ROX II devices. This represents a critical security flaw that undermines the fundamental cryptographic protections expected from secure communication protocols. The issue manifests specifically within the Cipher Block Chaining padding implementation, creating a weakness that directly impacts the integrity and confidentiality of data transmitted over HTTPS connections.
The technical flaw stems from improper implementation of CBC (Cipher Block Chaining) padding validation within the SSL layer of these network devices. When a padding-oracle attack is successfully executed against the affected systems, attackers can exploit the inconsistent error handling during padding verification to gradually decrypt encrypted communications. This vulnerability operates through a side-channel attack mechanism where the attacker observes the response behavior of the system when processing malformed padding, thereby gaining information about the plaintext data. The flaw is distinct from the well-known POODLE vulnerability CVE-2014-3566, as it specifically targets the padding validation implementation rather than the SSL protocol version itself.
The operational impact of this vulnerability extends beyond simple data confidentiality breaches, as it enables sophisticated man-in-the-middle attacks that can compromise sensitive operational technology communications. Network administrators and security personnel face significant risks when these devices are deployed in industrial control environments where the integrity of communication channels is paramount. The vulnerability affects devices that may be critical to infrastructure operations, potentially allowing attackers to intercept and manipulate control data, which could lead to unauthorized system modifications, data exfiltration, or service disruption. Organizations relying on Siemens RuggedCom devices for industrial networking face potential exposure to attackers who can leverage this weakness to gain unauthorized access to operational data and control mechanisms.
Mitigation strategies for CVE-2015-5537 primarily involve upgrading affected systems to Siemens RuggedCom ROS version 4.2.0 or later, which contains the necessary patches to address the CBC padding implementation flaw. Network security teams should also consider implementing additional monitoring and detection measures to identify potential padding-oracle attack attempts, though the nature of this attack makes detection particularly challenging. Organizations should conduct comprehensive vulnerability assessments of their industrial control networks to identify all affected devices and prioritize remediation efforts based on risk exposure. The vulnerability aligns with CWE-119 which addresses improper restriction of operations within a memory buffer, and relates to ATT&CK technique T1071.004 for application layer protocol usage, particularly in the context of cryptographic protocol manipulation. Security controls should emphasize network segmentation and access controls to limit the potential impact of successful exploitation, while maintaining proper audit logging to detect unauthorized access attempts.