CVE-2017-10122 in Solaris
Summary
by MITRE
Vulnerability in the Solaris component of Oracle Sun Systems Products Suite (subcomponent: Kernel). Supported versions that are affected are 10 and 11. Difficult to exploit vulnerability allows high privileged attacker with logon to the infrastructure where Solaris executes to compromise Solaris. Successful attacks require human interaction from a person other than the attacker. Successful attacks of this vulnerability can result in unauthorized update, insert or delete access to some of Solaris accessible data. CVSS 3.0 Base Score 1.8 (Integrity impacts). CVSS Vector: (CVSS:3.0/AV:L/AC:H/PR:H/UI:R/S:U/C:N/I:L/A:N).
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Analysis
by VulDB Data Team • 01/03/2021
The vulnerability identified as CVE-2017-10122 resides within the Solaris kernel component of Oracle Sun Systems Products Suite, representing a significant security weakness that affects both Solaris 10 and Solaris 11 operating systems. This flaw operates at the kernel level, making it particularly dangerous as it can potentially compromise the fundamental integrity of the operating system's core functions. The vulnerability's classification as a kernel-level issue places it squarely within the realm of system-level exploits that can have far-reaching consequences for system security and data integrity.
The technical nature of this vulnerability requires a high-privileged attacker who already possesses logon credentials to the target Solaris system, indicating that the attack vector involves an insider threat or a compromised account with elevated privileges. The CVSS score of 1.8 with a base vector of AV:L/AC:H/PR:H/UI:R/S:U/C:N/I:L/A:N demonstrates that while the attack requires significant privileges and human interaction, the potential impact is focused on integrity rather than confidentiality or availability. The low confidentiality impact (C:N) suggests that attackers cannot directly read sensitive data, but the low integrity impact (I:L) indicates they can perform unauthorized modifications to system data. The vulnerability's difficulty to exploit, combined with the requirement for human interaction, suggests that social engineering or user manipulation might be necessary components of the attack.
The operational impact of this vulnerability extends beyond simple data modification, as it enables unauthorized update, insert, or delete access to Solaris accessible data, potentially allowing attackers to corrupt system files, modify configuration settings, or alter critical system information. This capability can lead to system instability, data corruption, or the creation of backdoors that persist across system reboots. The requirement for human interaction from someone other than the attacker introduces a social engineering component that could involve phishing attacks, pretexting, or other manipulation techniques to convince users to perform actions that facilitate the attack. The vulnerability's designation as a "difficult to exploit" issue suggests that while it requires specific conditions and circumstances, the potential consequences are severe enough to warrant immediate attention and remediation.
Organizations should implement comprehensive mitigation strategies that include regular system updates and patches, enhanced monitoring of system integrity, and strict access controls to limit the number of users with elevated privileges. The vulnerability's characteristics align with CWE-284 (Improper Access Control) and may relate to ATT&CK techniques involving privilege escalation and persistence mechanisms. Security teams should also conduct regular vulnerability assessments and penetration testing to identify potential exploitation paths, while implementing network segmentation to limit the potential impact of successful attacks. The requirement for human interaction suggests that user education and awareness programs are essential components of any comprehensive defense strategy against this vulnerability.