CVE-2017-3538 in VM VirtualBox
Summary
by MITRE
Vulnerability in the Oracle VM VirtualBox component of Oracle Virtualization (subcomponent: Shared Folder). Supported versions that are affected are Prior to 5.0.34 and Prior to 5.1.16. Difficult to exploit vulnerability allows low privileged attacker with logon to the infrastructure where Oracle VM VirtualBox executes to compromise Oracle VM VirtualBox. While the vulnerability is in Oracle VM VirtualBox, attacks may significantly impact additional products. Successful attacks of this vulnerability can result in unauthorized creation, deletion or modification access to critical data or all Oracle VM VirtualBox accessible data as well as unauthorized access to critical data or complete access to all Oracle VM VirtualBox accessible data. CVSS 3.0 Base Score 7.5 (Confidentiality and Integrity impacts). CVSS Vector: (CVSS:3.0/AV:L/AC:H/PR:L/UI:N/S:C/C:H/I:H/A:N).
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Analysis
by VulDB Data Team • 12/20/2020
The vulnerability identified as CVE-2017-3538 resides within Oracle VM VirtualBox's Shared Folder functionality, representing a critical security flaw that undermines the integrity and confidentiality of virtualized environments. This vulnerability affects Oracle Virtualization components where VirtualBox operates as the underlying virtualization platform, specifically targeting versions prior to 5.0.34 and 5.1.16. The flaw manifests in the shared folder implementation which allows for improper access control mechanisms, creating a pathway for malicious actors to exploit the virtualization layer. The vulnerability's classification as difficult to exploit indicates that while sophisticated attackers can leverage it, the attack vector requires specific conditions including local system access and authentication credentials. The CVSS 3.0 score of 7.5 reflects the severity of impact, with high confidentiality and integrity implications that can result in unauthorized data manipulation across the entire VirtualBox environment.
The technical exploitation of this vulnerability stems from inadequate input validation and access control checks within the shared folder subsystem of VirtualBox. Attackers with low privilege local access can manipulate the shared folder functionality to gain unauthorized access to data that should remain protected within the virtual environment. This flaw operates at the kernel level within the virtualization stack, allowing attackers to bypass normal security boundaries that separate virtual machines from host systems. The vulnerability's impact extends beyond the immediate VirtualBox environment as it can compromise other applications and systems that rely on the virtualized infrastructure. The shared folder mechanism typically provides access to host system directories from within guest virtual machines, and the flaw enables attackers to manipulate these access controls to gain elevated privileges or access to sensitive host resources.
The operational implications of CVE-2017-3538 are severe for organizations utilizing Oracle VM VirtualBox in production environments. Successful exploitation can lead to complete data compromise across all shared folders accessible to the virtualized systems, potentially exposing sensitive corporate data, intellectual property, or personal information stored on the host system. The vulnerability's ability to affect additional products stems from the interconnected nature of virtualized environments where compromised VirtualBox instances can serve as entry points for broader network attacks. Organizations may experience unauthorized data modification or deletion, potentially leading to business continuity disruptions and regulatory compliance violations. The vulnerability's impact is particularly concerning in enterprise environments where virtualization is extensively used for application deployment, development testing, and infrastructure consolidation.
Mitigation strategies for CVE-2017-3538 should prioritize immediate patching of affected VirtualBox versions to 5.0.34 or 5.1.16 and later releases. Organizations should implement network segmentation to limit local access to virtualization hosts and enforce strict access controls for administrative functions. The principle of least privilege should be applied to virtual machine users and shared folder configurations, limiting the scope of potential compromise. Security monitoring should be enhanced to detect anomalous access patterns in shared folder operations and unauthorized data access attempts. Additionally, organizations should conduct comprehensive vulnerability assessments of their virtualization infrastructure and implement regular security audits of virtual machine configurations. The vulnerability aligns with CWE-284 (Improper Access Control) and represents a significant concern for ATT&CK framework categories related to privilege escalation and credential access. Organizations should also consider implementing endpoint detection and response solutions specifically designed to monitor virtualization layer activities and detect exploitation attempts of hypervisor-level vulnerabilities.