CVE-2016-5958 in Security Privileged Identity Manager
Summary
by MITRE
IBM Security Privileged Identity Manager could allow a remote attacker to obtain sensitive information, caused by the failure to set the secure flag for the session cookie in SSL mode. By intercepting its transmission within an HTTP session, an attacker could exploit this vulnerability to capture the cookie and obtain sensitive information.
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Analysis
by VulDB Data Team • 08/09/2020
IBM Security Privileged Identity Manager contains a critical security flaw that enables remote attackers to compromise sensitive session data through improper cookie security configuration. This vulnerability stems from the application's failure to properly implement the secure flag for session cookies when operating in SSL mode, creating a significant exposure in the authentication and session management framework. The insecure configuration allows session cookies to be transmitted over both HTTP and HTTPS connections, undermining the intended security protections of SSL/TLS encryption. The vulnerability specifically affects the session cookie handling mechanism that is crucial for maintaining authenticated user sessions within the privileged identity management system.
The technical implementation flaw resides in the cookie attribute configuration where the secure flag is not properly set during session establishment, despite the application operating in SSL mode. This misconfiguration allows the session cookie to be sent over unencrypted HTTP connections, making it susceptible to interception through man-in-the-middle attacks or network eavesdropping techniques. The vulnerability is classified as a weakness in secure cookie handling practices and aligns with CWE-614, which addresses the improper storage of sensitive information in cookies. Attackers can exploit this by positioning themselves within the network path between the client and server to capture the unsecured session cookie during transmission, thereby gaining unauthorized access to privileged user sessions and potentially escalating their privileges within the system.
The operational impact of this vulnerability extends beyond simple information disclosure, as it provides attackers with direct access to privileged user sessions within the IBM Security Privileged Identity Manager environment. This exposure enables unauthorized individuals to impersonate legitimate users with elevated privileges, potentially leading to complete system compromise or unauthorized access to sensitive organizational data. The vulnerability affects the integrity of the authentication process and undermines the trust model that the privileged identity management system is designed to maintain. Organizations utilizing this security solution face significant risk of privilege escalation attacks, especially in environments where network traffic is not properly monitored or secured against interception attacks.
Effective mitigation strategies must address both the immediate configuration issue and broader network security controls. The primary remediation involves ensuring that session cookies are properly configured with the secure flag set to true when operating in SSL mode, preventing transmission over unencrypted channels. Additionally, organizations should implement comprehensive network monitoring to detect and prevent man-in-the-middle attacks, while also enforcing strict SSL/TLS configurations to ensure all communications remain encrypted. Security teams should conduct regular vulnerability assessments to identify similar cookie security misconfigurations across the entire application portfolio, as this vulnerability represents a common pattern in web application security that affects numerous systems. The implementation of additional security measures such as HTTP Strict Transport Security (HSTS) and proper session management policies will further strengthen the defense-in-depth posture against similar attack vectors. This vulnerability demonstrates the critical importance of proper cookie security implementation and aligns with ATT&CK technique T1566 for credential access through network sniffing and session hijacking attacks.