CVE-2018-1818 in Security Guardium
Summary
by MITRE
IBM Security Guardium 10 and 10.5 contains hard-coded credentials, such as a password or cryptographic key, which it uses for its own inbound authentication, outbound communication to external components, or encryption of internal data. IBM X-Force ID: 150022.
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Analysis
by VulDB Data Team • 06/19/2023
The vulnerability identified as CVE-2018-1818 represents a critical security flaw in IBM Security Guardium versions 10 and 10.5, where hard-coded credentials are embedded within the software components. This weakness falls under the Common Weakness Enumeration category CWE-798, which specifically addresses the use of hard-coded credentials in software applications. The affected system contains passwords or cryptographic keys that are permanently embedded in the codebase, making them accessible to anyone who can examine the application binaries or documentation. These hard-coded credentials serve multiple purposes within the Guardium framework including inbound authentication mechanisms, outbound communication protocols to external security components, and encryption of internal data repositories.
The operational impact of this vulnerability extends beyond simple credential exposure, as it fundamentally undermines the security architecture of the Guardium platform. When credentials are hard-coded, they become persistent attack vectors that remain valid regardless of password rotation policies or security updates. An attacker with access to the system can extract these credentials through reverse engineering, static code analysis, or by examining memory dumps during runtime operations. This vulnerability particularly affects the integrity and confidentiality of data processed by Guardium, as the hard-coded keys may be used to encrypt sensitive information or authenticate with external systems. The vulnerability also creates potential for privilege escalation attacks, where an attacker could leverage these credentials to gain unauthorized access to additional systems or components that trust the same authentication mechanisms.
The exploitation of this vulnerability aligns with several techniques documented in the MITRE ATT&CK framework, particularly under the initial access and credential access phases. Attackers could use these hard-coded credentials to establish persistent access to the Guardium system and potentially move laterally within the network infrastructure. The vulnerability's impact is amplified by the fact that Guardium serves as a security data warehouse and analytics platform, meaning compromised credentials could provide attackers with access to sensitive security data, audit trails, and monitoring information. The IBM X-Force ID 150022 further emphasizes the severity and recognition of this weakness within the security community, indicating that organizations using these specific Guardium versions face heightened risk of unauthorized access and data compromise.
Organizations should implement immediate mitigation strategies including patching to the latest available versions of IBM Security Guardium that address this hard-coded credential issue. System administrators should conduct thorough inventory reviews to identify any instances where these vulnerable versions are deployed and assess the potential exposure of embedded credentials. Additional mitigations include implementing network segmentation to limit access to Guardium systems, monitoring for unauthorized access attempts using the compromised credentials, and conducting regular security assessments to identify other potential hard-coded credentials within the organization's software portfolio. The remediation process should also involve re-evaluating credential management practices and implementing secure key rotation procedures to prevent similar vulnerabilities from occurring in future deployments.