CVE-2017-17062 in OX AppSuite
Summary
by MITRE
The backend component in Open-Xchange OX App Suite before 7.6.3-rev35, 7.8.x before 7.8.2-rev38, 7.8.3 before 7.8.3-rev41, and 7.8.4 before 7.8.4-rev19 allows remote authenticated users to save arbitrary user attributes by leveraging improper privilege management.
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Analysis
by VulDB Data Team • 02/19/2020
The vulnerability identified as CVE-2017-17062 represents a critical privilege escalation flaw within the Open-Xchange OX App Suite backend component that affects multiple version ranges including 7.6.3-rev35, 7.8.2-rev38, 7.8.3-rev41, and 7.8.4-rev19. This issue stems from inadequate access control mechanisms that permit authenticated users to manipulate user attributes beyond their designated permissions. The flaw operates at the core of the application's privilege management system, where proper authorization checks fail to validate whether a user should be permitted to modify specific attributes of other users within the system. Such a vulnerability creates a significant attack surface that could enable malicious actors with legitimate credentials to gain unauthorized access to sensitive user data or manipulate user configurations.
The technical implementation of this vulnerability lies in the improper handling of user attribute persistence within the backend processing layer. When authenticated users submit requests to modify user attributes, the system fails to perform adequate validation of the requesting user's privileges against the target user's attribute modification scope. This misconfiguration allows attackers to craft requests that bypass normal access controls, enabling them to set arbitrary values for user attributes including but not limited to email addresses, group memberships, permissions, and other sensitive configuration parameters. The flaw specifically manifests when the application processes attribute update requests without verifying that the authenticated user possesses sufficient privileges to modify the target user's specific attributes, creating a path for privilege escalation attacks.
The operational impact of this vulnerability extends beyond simple data manipulation to encompass potential data integrity compromise and unauthorized access to sensitive user information. Attackers leveraging this vulnerability could potentially elevate their privileges to perform actions typically restricted to administrators or system-level users, including modifying user roles, accessing restricted features, or altering critical user configurations that could lead to further exploitation. The remote nature of this vulnerability means that attackers do not require physical access to the system, and the authenticated user requirement provides a plausible attack vector through credential theft, session hijacking, or social engineering techniques that could compromise legitimate user accounts. This vulnerability directly impacts the principle of least privilege and could enable attackers to gain unauthorized access to confidential user data or system resources that should remain restricted.
Organizations utilizing affected versions of Open-Xchange OX App Suite should immediately implement the vendor-provided patches and updates to address this privilege management flaw. The recommended mitigation strategy involves applying the latest security patches from Open-Xchange that correct the improper privilege validation mechanisms within the backend component. System administrators should also consider implementing additional monitoring controls to detect unauthorized attribute modification attempts and review existing access control policies to ensure proper segregation of duties. The vulnerability aligns with CWE-284, which addresses improper access control, and represents a specific implementation of weak privilege management that could be exploited to achieve unauthorized access. From an ATT&CK perspective, this vulnerability maps to privilege escalation techniques where attackers leverage existing legitimate credentials to perform unauthorized operations within the system. Organizations should also conduct comprehensive security assessments of their user attribute management systems and implement proper input validation and access control mechanisms to prevent similar issues from occurring in other components of their infrastructure.