CVE-2016-7071 in CloudForms
Summary
by MITRE
It was found that the CloudForms before 5.6.2.2, and 5.7.0.7 did not properly apply permissions controls to VM IDs passed by users. A remote, authenticated attacker could use this flaw to execute arbitrary VMs on systems managed by CloudForms if they know the ID of the VM.
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Analysis
by VulDB Data Team • 05/08/2023
The vulnerability described in CVE-2016-7071 represents a critical authorization bypass flaw affecting Red Hat CloudForms management platform versions prior to 5.6.2.2 and 5.7.0.7. This issue stems from insufficient input validation and permission enforcement mechanisms within the CloudForms application architecture, specifically in how the system handles virtual machine identifiers submitted by authenticated users. The flaw exists in the application's privilege escalation controls, allowing malicious actors to manipulate VM execution requests through crafted identifiers.
The technical implementation of this vulnerability demonstrates a classic access control weakness where the CloudForms platform fails to properly validate user permissions against the requested virtual machine resources. When an authenticated user submits a VM ID for execution or management operations, the system should verify that the user possesses appropriate authorization rights for that specific virtual machine instance. However, the vulnerability allows attackers to bypass these authorization checks by exploiting how the platform processes and validates user-supplied VM identifiers, effectively enabling unauthorized execution of virtual machines within the managed environment.
From an operational perspective, this vulnerability poses significant risks to cloud infrastructure security as it enables remote authenticated attackers to execute arbitrary virtual machines without proper authorization. The attack requires only knowledge of a valid VM ID within the system, making it particularly dangerous in environments where multiple users have access to the CloudForms management interface. Attackers could potentially leverage this flaw to execute malicious code within virtual machines, access sensitive data, or disrupt service availability by launching unauthorized virtual machine instances.
The impact of this vulnerability extends beyond simple unauthorized access, as it fundamentally undermines the security model of the CloudForms platform and could enable more sophisticated attack vectors. Security researchers have classified this issue as a privilege escalation vulnerability, with potential for lateral movement within cloud environments and data exfiltration. The flaw's presence in multiple version streams indicates a systemic weakness in the platform's authorization framework that required comprehensive patching across affected releases.
Organizations should implement immediate mitigations including applying the vendor-provided security patches for CloudForms versions 5.6.2.2 and 5.7.0.7, which address the permission validation controls. Network segmentation and monitoring of CloudForms management interfaces should be enhanced to detect anomalous VM execution patterns. Additionally, implementing principle of least privilege controls and regular audit of user permissions can help reduce the attack surface. This vulnerability aligns with CWE-285, which addresses improper authorization in software systems, and represents a clear violation of the principle of least privilege as defined in NIST SP 800-53 security controls. The threat landscape for such vulnerabilities is further detailed in MITRE ATT&CK framework under privilege escalation techniques where attackers leverage authorization bypass flaws to gain elevated system access.