CVE-2018-10286 in iPECS NMS
Summary
by MITRE
The Ericsson-LG iPECS NMS A.1Ac web application discloses sensitive information such as the NMS admin credentials and the PostgreSQL database credentials to logged-in users via the responses to certain HTTP POST requests. In order to be able to see the credentials in cleartext, an attacker needs to be authenticated.
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Analysis
by VulDB Data Team • 05/06/2025
The vulnerability identified as CVE-2018-10286 affects the Ericsson-LG iPECS NMS A.1Ac web application, representing a significant information disclosure flaw that undermines the security posture of the system. This vulnerability specifically targets the application's handling of sensitive credentials within its web interface, creating a scenario where authenticated attackers can access administrative and database credentials through crafted HTTP POST requests. The flaw demonstrates a critical misconfiguration in the application's response handling mechanisms, where sensitive authentication data is exposed to users with legitimate login credentials, thereby expanding the attack surface beyond what would be expected from normal operational procedures.
The technical implementation of this vulnerability stems from improper input validation and output sanitization within the web application's backend processing logic. When authenticated users submit specific HTTP POST requests to certain endpoints, the application inadvertently includes cleartext credentials in its response payloads. This behavior aligns with CWE-200, which categorizes information exposure vulnerabilities that occur when applications reveal sensitive data to unauthorized parties. The flaw exists because the application fails to properly distinguish between authenticated and unauthenticated access contexts when generating response content, allowing legitimate users to access information they should not be able to retrieve under normal security protocols. The exposure of both NMS admin credentials and PostgreSQL database credentials through this mechanism creates a cascading security risk that can lead to complete system compromise.
The operational impact of this vulnerability extends beyond simple credential exposure, as it provides attackers with elevated privileges within the network management system. Once an attacker gains access to the administrative credentials, they can manipulate system configurations, view sensitive network data, and potentially escalate their access to other connected systems. The PostgreSQL database credentials expose the underlying data store, potentially allowing attackers to extract user information, system logs, and other confidential data stored within the database. This vulnerability directly relates to ATT&CK technique T1566, which covers credential harvesting through various methods including web application attacks. The impact is particularly severe because the attacker must first authenticate to the system, but this initial authentication requirement does not prevent the subsequent credential disclosure, making it a particularly dangerous flaw in the context of privilege escalation attacks.
Mitigation strategies for CVE-2018-10286 should focus on immediate patching of the affected application to ensure proper credential handling and response sanitization. Organizations must implement strict access control measures to limit which authenticated users can access sensitive system information, and establish proper input validation for all HTTP POST requests. The application should be configured to return minimal response data that does not include credential information, even for authenticated users. Network segmentation and monitoring should be enhanced to detect unusual patterns of credential access attempts, and regular security audits should be conducted to identify similar information disclosure vulnerabilities. Additionally, implementing automated security scanning tools that can detect such credential exposure patterns in web applications will help prevent similar vulnerabilities from being introduced in future deployments. The vulnerability highlights the importance of following secure coding practices and conducting thorough security testing of web applications, particularly those handling sensitive administrative and database credentials.