CVE-2018-14366 in Pulse Connect Secure
Summary
by MITRE
download.cgi in Pulse Secure Pulse Connect Secure 8.1RX before 8.1R13 and 8.3RX before 8.3R4 and Pulse Policy Secure through 5.2RX before 5.2R10 and 5.4RX before 5.4R4 have an Open Redirect Vulnerability.
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Analysis
by VulDB Data Team • 03/21/2020
The vulnerability identified as CVE-2018-14366 represents a critical open redirect flaw affecting Pulse Secure's Pulse Connect Secure and Pulse Policy Secure products. This vulnerability resides within the download.cgi component of affected versions, creating a significant security risk that can be exploited by malicious actors to redirect users to unauthorized destinations. The affected product lines include Pulse Connect Secure versions 8.1RX before 8.1R13 and 8.3RX before 8.3R4, as well as Pulse Policy Secure versions through 5.2RX before 5.2R10 and 5.4RX before 5.4R4. The open redirect vulnerability allows attackers to manipulate the redirection behavior of the affected systems, potentially enabling phishing attacks, credential theft, and other malicious activities.
The technical implementation of this vulnerability stems from inadequate input validation within the download.cgi script. When processing user-supplied parameters that control redirect destinations, the system fails to properly sanitize or validate the input, allowing attackers to inject malicious URLs that will be used for redirection. This flaw falls under CWE-601, which specifically addresses open redirect vulnerabilities where web applications fail to validate redirect URLs, and aligns with ATT&CK technique T1566.001 for phishing through social engineering. The vulnerability can be exploited by crafting malicious URLs that contain crafted redirect parameters, which when clicked by unsuspecting users, will redirect them to attacker-controlled domains. The lack of proper validation means that any URL parameter passed to the download.cgi script can potentially be used for malicious redirection, regardless of its legitimacy or intended destination.
The operational impact of this vulnerability extends beyond simple redirection attacks, as it creates a pathway for sophisticated social engineering campaigns that can compromise user credentials and sensitive information. Attackers can leverage this vulnerability to create convincing phishing pages that appear legitimate within the context of the Pulse Secure environment, making them more likely to succeed in credential theft or malware distribution. The vulnerability affects organizations that rely on Pulse Secure for remote access and policy enforcement, potentially allowing attackers to bypass security controls and gain unauthorized access to corporate networks. This threat is particularly concerning because it can be exploited without requiring authentication to the Pulse Secure systems, making it an attractive target for initial access attacks. The vulnerability also impacts the integrity of the user trust model that Pulse Secure systems are designed to maintain, as users may be unknowingly redirected to malicious sites that appear to be legitimate parts of the secure environment.
Organizations affected by CVE-2018-14366 should immediately implement mitigations including applying the vendor-provided patches for the affected versions, implementing proper input validation at the application level, and configuring network-level restrictions to prevent access to known malicious domains. The recommended remediation approach involves upgrading to patched versions of Pulse Connect Secure and Pulse Policy Secure, as well as implementing web application firewalls that can detect and block malicious redirect attempts. Network segmentation and monitoring should be enhanced to detect suspicious redirection patterns, while user education programs should emphasize the importance of verifying URLs before clicking on links, particularly those that appear to be part of secure environments. Security teams should also implement monitoring for unusual redirect patterns and establish incident response procedures specifically addressing open redirect vulnerabilities. The mitigation strategy should include regular vulnerability assessments and penetration testing to identify similar issues in other components of the secure environment, as well as implementing proper access controls and network monitoring to detect unauthorized redirection attempts. Organizations should also consider implementing additional authentication mechanisms and multi-factor authentication to reduce the impact of any successful exploitation attempts, as the open redirect vulnerability can be used as a stepping stone for more sophisticated attacks within the compromised environment.