CVE-2018-1165 in Sun ZFS Storage Appliance Kit
Summary
by MITRE
This vulnerability allows local attackers to escalate privileges on vulnerable installations of Joyent SmartOS release-20170803-20170803T064301Z. An attacker must first obtain the ability to execute low-privileged code on the target system in order to exploit this vulnerability. The specific flaw exists within the SMB_IOC_SVCENUM IOCTL. The issue results from the lack of proper validation of the length of user-supplied data prior to copying it to a fixed-length, heap-based buffer. An attacker can leverage this vulnerability to execute code under the context of the host OS. Was ZDI-CAN-4983.
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Analysis
by VulDB Data Team • 05/26/2024
The vulnerability described in CVE-2018-1165 represents a critical privilege escalation flaw within Joyent SmartOS operating system releases, specifically affecting the release-20170803-20170803T064301Z version. This issue demonstrates a classic buffer overflow vulnerability that can be exploited by local attackers who have already gained low-privileged access to the system. The vulnerability stems from insufficient input validation mechanisms within the SMB_IOC_SVCENUM IOCTL implementation, which is a component of the SmartOS operating system's service enumeration functionality. The flaw exists in the kernel-level code that handles service enumeration requests through the SMB (Server Message Block) interface, making it particularly dangerous as it operates at the core level of system operations.
The technical implementation of this vulnerability involves a heap-based buffer overflow condition that occurs when user-supplied data is copied into a fixed-length buffer without proper validation of the data length. This type of vulnerability maps directly to CWE-121, which describes heap-based buffer overflow conditions where insufficient bounds checking allows attackers to overwrite adjacent memory locations. The flaw specifically affects the IOCTL (Input/Output Control) interface used for service enumeration operations, where the system fails to validate the length parameter before copying data to a heap-allocated buffer. This improper validation creates a predictable memory corruption scenario that can be exploited to overwrite critical memory structures, potentially leading to arbitrary code execution with elevated privileges.
The operational impact of this vulnerability is severe as it allows local attackers who have already established a foothold on the system to escalate their privileges to the host OS level. This escalation occurs through the exploitation of the buffer overflow condition in the SMB_IOC_SVCENUM IOCTL, which operates within the kernel context of the SmartOS system. The vulnerability essentially provides a pathway for attackers to bypass normal access controls and gain complete control over the host operating system, potentially compromising the entire system infrastructure. This type of privilege escalation attack aligns with ATT&CK technique T1068, which covers "Local Privilege Escalation" through kernel exploits, and represents a significant threat to system integrity and security posture.
Mitigation strategies for this vulnerability require immediate patching of the affected SmartOS releases, as the flaw exists in the core kernel components that handle service enumeration operations. System administrators should prioritize updating to patched versions of Joyent SmartOS that address the buffer overflow condition in the SMB_IOC_SVCENUM IOCTL implementation. Additional defensive measures include implementing strict access controls to limit the ability of low-privileged users to execute code on the system, monitoring for suspicious IOCTL operations, and employing runtime protection mechanisms such as stack canaries or address space layout randomization to make exploitation more difficult. Organizations should also conduct thorough security assessments to identify any potential exploitation attempts and implement network segmentation to limit the impact of successful attacks. The vulnerability underscores the importance of proper input validation in kernel-level code and the critical need for regular security updates in operating system environments.