CVE-2015-7680 in MOVEit DMZ
Summary
by MITRE
Ipswitch MOVEit DMZ before 8.2 provides different error messages for authentication attempts depending on whether the user account exists, which allows remote attackers to enumerate usernames via a series of SOAP requests to machine.aspx.
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Analysis
by VulDB Data Team • 07/07/2022
The vulnerability described in CVE-2015-7680 affects Ipswitch MOVEit DMZ versions prior to 8.2 and represents a classic account enumeration flaw that exposes fundamental security weaknesses in authentication handling. This issue stems from the application's inconsistent error messaging behavior during authentication attempts, where the system provides different responses based on whether a user account exists within the system. The vulnerability specifically manifests through SOAP requests directed to the machine.aspx endpoint, making it accessible to remote attackers who can exploit this inconsistency to systematically determine valid usernames within the target system. This type of information disclosure vulnerability directly violates security principle of least privilege and can significantly weaken the overall security posture of the affected system.
The technical implementation of this vulnerability resides in the authentication subsystem's error handling mechanism, where the application's design fails to provide consistent feedback regardless of authentication success or failure states. When an attacker submits a SOAP request to machine.aspx with a username that does not exist, the system generates one type of error response, whereas attempting authentication with a valid username produces a different error message. This differential response behavior creates a side-channel attack vector that allows adversaries to perform systematic enumeration attacks by submitting multiple authentication requests and observing the varying responses. The vulnerability operates at the application layer and specifically targets the web services interface, making it particularly dangerous as it can be exploited without requiring prior authentication access to the system.
The operational impact of CVE-2015-7680 extends beyond simple username enumeration, as it enables attackers to conduct targeted credential stuffing and brute force attacks against valid accounts. Once an attacker has identified valid usernames through this enumeration process, they can focus their efforts on cracking passwords for specific accounts rather than attempting to guess random credentials, dramatically increasing the effectiveness of subsequent attacks. This vulnerability also provides attackers with intelligence about the target environment's user base, potentially revealing organizational structures and user naming conventions that could be leveraged in social engineering attacks or privilege escalation attempts. The attack can be automated through simple scripts that repeatedly submit authentication requests and parse responses to identify valid accounts, making the exploitation relatively straightforward and efficient.
Security professionals should consider this vulnerability in the context of established frameworks such as CWE-200, which categorizes information exposure issues, and ATT&CK technique T1078 for valid accounts and T1566 for credential harvesting. The vulnerability directly relates to the principle of providing consistent error messages regardless of authentication state, a fundamental security practice that prevents attackers from gaining intelligence about system internals. Organizations should implement mitigations including consistent error handling across authentication endpoints, disabling account enumeration features, and implementing rate limiting and account lockout mechanisms to prevent automated enumeration attacks. The most effective remediation involves upgrading to Ipswitch MOVEit DMZ version 8.2 or later, where the vendor has addressed this specific inconsistency in error messaging behavior. Additionally, network-level controls such as intrusion detection systems and web application firewalls should be configured to monitor for suspicious SOAP request patterns and authentication attempts that could indicate enumeration activity.