CVE-2018-1101 in Ansible Tower
Summary
by MITRE
Ansible Tower before version 3.2.4 has a flaw in the management of system and organization administrators that allows for privilege escalation. System administrators that are members of organizations can have their passwords reset by organization administrators, allowing organization administrators access to the entire system.
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Analysis
by VulDB Data Team • 08/22/2022
The vulnerability identified as CVE-2018-1101 represents a critical privilege escalation flaw within Ansible Tower versions prior to 3.2.4, demonstrating a fundamental breakdown in access control mechanisms that directly violates the principle of least privilege. This vulnerability exists in the management of administrative roles and permissions within the Ansible Tower platform, specifically affecting the relationship between system-level and organization-level administrators. The flaw allows for unauthorized privilege escalation by exploiting the improper separation of duties between different administrative roles, creating a dangerous overlap in administrative capabilities that should remain strictly isolated. The vulnerability stems from inadequate role-based access control implementation where organization administrators are granted permissions that extend beyond their intended scope, enabling them to manipulate system-level administrative accounts through password reset functionality.
The technical implementation of this vulnerability involves the improper handling of administrative account management within the Ansible Tower authentication and authorization framework. When organization administrators attempt to reset passwords for system administrators who are also members of their organizations, the system fails to properly validate the administrative privileges of the requesting user. This creates a scenario where organization administrators can effectively gain system-level access by resetting the credentials of system administrators, bypassing the normal administrative hierarchy and security boundaries that should protect system-level accounts. The flaw operates at the application layer and is classified under CWE-284 which specifically addresses improper access control or inadequate privileges for system resources. The vulnerability demonstrates a classic case of role confusion where the system fails to properly distinguish between different levels of administrative authority, allowing lower-level administrators to perform actions that should be restricted to higher-level system administrators.
The operational impact of CVE-2018-1101 is severe and far-reaching, as it provides attackers with a pathway to achieve complete system compromise through relatively simple means. Organization administrators who exploit this vulnerability can gain access to all system-level resources, including but not limited to user management, credential storage, system configuration, and access to sensitive data repositories. This privilege escalation allows for persistent access to the entire Ansible Tower infrastructure, potentially enabling attackers to modify or delete critical system configurations, access confidential information, or establish backdoors for continued unauthorized access. The vulnerability also impacts the integrity and confidentiality of the entire Ansible Tower deployment, as organization administrators can manipulate system-level settings and access information that should remain restricted to system administrators only. This flaw directly violates the security principle of separation of privileges and creates a significant risk for organizations that rely on Ansible Tower for infrastructure automation and configuration management.
The remediation and mitigation strategies for CVE-2018-1101 focus on implementing proper access control mechanisms and role-based permissions that enforce strict separation between system and organization administrative functions. Organizations should immediately upgrade to Ansible Tower version 3.2.4 or later, which includes fixes for the privilege escalation vulnerability. Additionally, administrators should review and implement proper role assignments that prevent organization administrators from having the ability to reset system administrator passwords. The mitigation process should include disabling unnecessary administrative permissions, implementing regular access control reviews, and establishing monitoring procedures to detect unauthorized administrative activities. From an ATT&CK framework perspective, this vulnerability maps to privilege escalation techniques where attackers leverage weak access control to elevate their privileges, and the remediation efforts should include implementing proper access control measures and monitoring for suspicious administrative activities. Organizations should also consider implementing additional security controls such as multi-factor authentication for administrative accounts, regular security audits, and establishing clear administrative role definitions that prevent the overlap of system and organization administrative capabilities.