CVE-2018-3687 in Quartus II
Summary
by MITRE
Unquoted service paths in Intel Quartus II Programmer and Tools in versions 11.0 - 15.0 allow a local attacker to potentially execute arbitrary code.
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Analysis
by VulDB Data Team • 03/02/2020
The vulnerability identified as CVE-2018-3687 represents a critical security flaw in Intel Quartus II Programmer and Tools versions 11.0 through 15.0, where unquoted service paths create exploitable conditions for local privilege escalation. This vulnerability falls under the category of path traversal and service configuration weaknesses that have been consistently documented in cybersecurity frameworks including CWE-78 and CWE-787. The flaw specifically manifests when Windows service installation paths contain spaces but lack proper quotation marks around the path strings, creating opportunities for malicious code injection.
The technical implementation of this vulnerability stems from how Windows services handle path specifications during installation processes. When service paths contain spaces without proper quotation, the Windows service control manager interprets the path incorrectly, potentially resolving to a location outside the intended directory structure. Attackers can exploit this behavior by placing malicious executables in directories that fall within the service resolution path, allowing them to execute code with the privileges of the service account. This issue directly relates to ATT&CK technique T1068 which covers local privilege escalation through service misconfigurations and path manipulation.
From an operational impact perspective, this vulnerability enables local attackers with basic user privileges to escalate their access level significantly. The exploitation typically requires physical access to the system or network access to execute malicious code, but once successful, the attacker gains elevated privileges that can potentially lead to full system compromise. The vulnerability affects a wide range of Intel Quartus II versions, making it particularly concerning for embedded systems development environments and hardware design workflows that rely on these tools. The attack vector is considered low complexity and high impact, as it requires minimal skills to exploit and can result in complete system takeover.
Mitigation strategies for CVE-2018-3687 should focus on immediate patching of affected Intel Quartus II versions, with administrators prioritizing updates to the latest available releases. System administrators should also conduct comprehensive audits of installed services to identify and correct unquoted service paths across all system components. Additional protective measures include implementing least privilege principles for service accounts, regularly monitoring service configurations, and applying Windows security hardening guidelines. Organizations should also consider deploying application whitelisting solutions to prevent execution of unauthorized binaries in service paths, while maintaining regular vulnerability scanning to identify similar misconfigurations throughout their infrastructure. The remediation process should include verification that service paths are properly quoted and that no malicious code has been introduced into the system through exploitation attempts.