CVE-2018-2909 in VM VirtualBox
Summary
by MITRE
Vulnerability in the Oracle VM VirtualBox component of Oracle Virtualization (subcomponent: Core). The supported version that is affected is Prior to 5.2.20. Easily exploitable vulnerability allows unauthenticated attacker with logon to the infrastructure where Oracle VM VirtualBox executes to compromise Oracle VM VirtualBox. Successful attacks require human interaction from a person other than the attacker and while the vulnerability is in Oracle VM VirtualBox, attacks may significantly impact additional products. Successful attacks of this vulnerability can result in takeover of Oracle VM VirtualBox. CVSS 3.0 Base Score 8.6 (Confidentiality, Integrity and Availability impacts). CVSS Vector: (CVSS:3.0/AV:L/AC:L/PR:N/UI:R/S:C/C:H/I:H/A:H).
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Analysis
by VulDB Data Team • 05/29/2023
The vulnerability identified as CVE-2018-2909 resides within Oracle VM VirtualBox's Core subcomponent, representing a critical security flaw that affects versions prior to 5.2.20. This vulnerability operates within the realm of virtualization security and demonstrates how flaws in virtual machine management software can create substantial attack vectors. The affected Oracle VM VirtualBox component serves as the foundational core responsible for managing virtual machine operations, making it a prime target for attackers seeking to compromise virtualized environments. The vulnerability's classification as easily exploitable indicates that attackers require minimal prerequisites to initiate successful attacks, though the attack requires human interaction from someone other than the attacker, suggesting a social engineering or user interaction component. The CVSS 3.0 score of 8.6 reflects the severity of impact across confidentiality, integrity, and availability domains, demonstrating the comprehensive nature of potential compromise.
The technical flaw manifests as a privilege escalation vulnerability that allows an attacker with local access to the host system where Oracle VM VirtualBox operates to gain unauthorized control over the virtualization platform. This vulnerability operates at the system level and leverages the trust relationship between the virtualization software and the host operating system. The attack requires an unauthenticated attacker who already has logon access to the infrastructure hosting the virtualization environment, which means that compromise of the host system or local network access provides sufficient conditions for exploitation. The vulnerability's impact extends beyond just the virtualization platform itself, as successful exploitation can affect additional products and systems within the virtualized environment, creating cascading security implications. The CVSS vector analysis reveals that the attack requires low complexity to execute, no privileges are needed for initial access, but requires human interaction, and the scope of impact can be considered as affecting additional products, which aligns with the potential for lateral movement and system compromise.
The operational impact of this vulnerability creates significant risk for organizations utilizing Oracle VM VirtualBox for their virtualization needs, particularly those running versions prior to 5.2.20. A successful compromise of the virtualization platform could result in complete takeover of the virtualization environment, allowing attackers to access all virtual machines managed by the vulnerable system. This represents a severe availability impact as virtualized systems could be rendered inaccessible or compromised, along with confidentiality implications as sensitive data within virtual machines could be exposed. The integrity impact extends to the potential for attackers to modify virtual machine configurations, inject malicious code into running systems, or manipulate the virtualization layer itself. Organizations using virtualized environments may face extensive recovery requirements and potential data loss, as the compromise of the virtualization platform affects all dependent virtual machines and services. The vulnerability's potential for affecting additional products through scope expansion makes this particularly concerning for enterprise environments where virtualization platforms often serve as central management points for multiple systems.
Organizations should immediately upgrade to Oracle VM VirtualBox version 5.2.20 or later to address this vulnerability, as this represents the primary and most effective mitigation strategy. The upgrade process should include comprehensive testing of virtual machine configurations and applications to ensure compatibility with the patched version. System administrators should implement additional monitoring of virtualization platform activities and access logs to detect potential exploitation attempts. Network segmentation and access controls should be strengthened around virtualization infrastructure to limit potential attack vectors. The vulnerability's classification under CWE-269 (Improper Privilege Management) and its alignment with ATT&CK techniques related to privilege escalation and system compromise highlight the importance of comprehensive security controls. Security teams should conduct thorough assessments of their virtualization environments to identify any potential exploitation attempts and ensure that all systems are properly patched. Regular security audits of virtualization platforms should be implemented to maintain ongoing protection against similar vulnerabilities and to ensure that the security posture of virtualized environments remains robust against evolving threats.