CVE-2016-0205 in Cloud Orchestrator
Summary
by MITRE
A vulnerability has been identified in IBM Cloud Orchestrator 2.3, 2.3.0.1, 2.4, and 2.4.0.1 that could allow an attacker after authentication to enumerate valid users of the system. IBM X-Force ID: 109394.
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Analysis
by VulDB Data Team • 05/06/2023
The vulnerability identified in IBM Cloud Orchestrator versions 2.3, 2.3.0.1, 2.4, and 2.4.0.1 represents a significant security weakness that enables authenticated attackers to perform user enumeration attacks. This flaw falls under the category of information disclosure vulnerabilities, specifically targeting the authentication and authorization mechanisms of the cloud orchestration platform. The vulnerability allows an attacker who has already gained access to the system through legitimate authentication to exploit a design flaw in the user validation process, thereby gaining unauthorized knowledge about the system's user base. This type of vulnerability is particularly dangerous as it provides attackers with intelligence that can be used for subsequent attacks, including targeted credential stuffing, account takeover attempts, or social engineering campaigns. The impact extends beyond simple information gathering, as user enumeration can serve as a foundational step for more sophisticated attack vectors that leverage knowledge of valid user accounts to compromise system integrity.
The technical implementation of this vulnerability stems from insufficient input validation and improper error handling within the user authentication and verification components of the IBM Cloud Orchestrator platform. When authenticated users attempt to perform certain operations or access specific resources, the system provides different responses or error messages for valid versus invalid user accounts. This differential response behavior creates a timing or response pattern that an attacker can exploit to distinguish between existing and non-existing user accounts. The vulnerability is classified under CWE-200, which addresses information exposure, and represents a specific instance of improper error handling that reveals system state information to unauthorized users. The flaw essentially allows an attacker to determine which user accounts exist within the system without requiring additional credentials, effectively creating a reconnaissance tool that can be used to build targeted attack strategies against legitimate users.
From an operational perspective, this vulnerability significantly weakens the security posture of organizations using IBM Cloud Orchestrator versions 2.3 through 2.4.0.1, as it provides attackers with a method to identify valid user accounts that can then be targeted through various attack vectors. The impact is particularly severe when considering that many organizations use cloud orchestration platforms as central management points for their infrastructure, making the compromise of user accounts potentially devastating. The vulnerability can be exploited through standard network-based attacks where an attacker with legitimate credentials can systematically test user accounts and build a comprehensive list of valid users. This enumeration capability can be automated and combined with other attack techniques such as brute force attempts against specific accounts or credential reuse attacks, making the overall threat landscape more dangerous. The vulnerability also aligns with ATT&CK technique T1078 which covers valid accounts as a means of gaining access, as it provides an attacker with knowledge that can be leveraged to maintain persistence and escalate privileges.
Organizations should implement immediate mitigations including applying the vendor-provided patches and updates that address this specific vulnerability in IBM Cloud Orchestrator. Additionally, security teams should consider implementing rate limiting and account lockout mechanisms to prevent automated enumeration attempts, while also ensuring that error messages provided to users are generic and do not reveal information about account validity. Network-level controls such as intrusion detection systems and firewall rules can be configured to monitor for patterns consistent with user enumeration attempts, providing early warning capabilities. The implementation of multi-factor authentication for privileged accounts adds an additional layer of protection, as even if user enumeration occurs, attackers would still require additional authentication factors to compromise accounts. Regular security assessments and vulnerability scanning should be conducted to identify similar issues in other components of the cloud infrastructure, as this type of vulnerability often indicates broader design weaknesses in authentication systems that may affect other platform components. The vulnerability also underscores the importance of proper security testing during development cycles, particularly focusing on authentication and authorization mechanisms to prevent similar issues from being introduced in future versions of the software.