CVE-2018-5404 in Kace K1000
Summary
by MITRE
The Quest Kace K1000 Appliance, versions prior to 9.0.270, allows an authenticated, remote attacker with least privileges ('User Console Only' role) to potentially exploit multiple Blind SQL Injection vulnerabilities to retrieve sensitive information from the database or copy the entire database. An authenticated remote attacker could leverage Blind SQL injections to obtain sensitive data.
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Analysis
by VulDB Data Team • 07/06/2025
The Quest Kace K1000 Appliance represents a comprehensive IT asset management and help desk solution widely deployed in enterprise environments for system inventory tracking, software deployment, and incident management. This appliance serves as a central repository for critical organizational data including user credentials, system configurations, software licenses, and network infrastructure details. The vulnerability identified as CVE-2018-5404 affects versions prior to 9.0.270, creating a significant security risk within organizations that rely on this platform for critical IT operations. The affected system operates as a web-based application with multiple administrative interfaces and database interaction points that process user inputs through various web forms and API endpoints. Security researchers identified that the appliance's web interface fails to properly sanitize user-supplied input before processing database queries, creating opportunities for malicious actors to manipulate database operations through carefully crafted payloads.
The technical flaw manifests as multiple blind SQL injection vulnerabilities within the Kace K1000 appliance's web application layer. These vulnerabilities occur when the application processes user input through GET and POST parameters without adequate input validation or parameterized query construction. An attacker with the least privileged 'User Console Only' role can exploit these weaknesses by injecting malicious SQL payloads into various input fields that are processed by the backend database. The blind nature of these injections means that the attacker cannot directly observe database query results through error messages or direct output, requiring them to infer information through response timing variations or conditional responses. The vulnerability specifically affects database interaction points where user input is directly concatenated into SQL queries rather than being properly parameterized, violating fundamental security principles outlined in CWE-89 and CWE-352. This allows for the extraction of sensitive information including user accounts, system configurations, and potentially complete database contents through iterative exploitation techniques.
The operational impact of this vulnerability extends beyond simple data theft to encompass complete system compromise and organizational disruption. An authenticated attacker with the 'User Console Only' role can leverage these blind SQL injections to escalate privileges and gain access to administrative functions within the appliance. The ability to copy the entire database provides attackers with comprehensive access to organizational IT asset information, user credentials, and system configurations that could be used for lateral movement within the network. This vulnerability particularly affects organizations that rely heavily on the Kace appliance for critical IT operations, as compromise of this system could lead to complete visibility into the organization's IT infrastructure. The attack vector requires only authentication access, making it particularly dangerous as it can be exploited by insiders or compromised user accounts. Organizations using this appliance may experience significant operational disruption if attackers exploit these vulnerabilities to access or corrupt critical system data, potentially leading to service outages or compliance violations under various regulatory frameworks.
Organizations should immediately implement mitigation strategies including updating to the patched version 9.0.270 or later, which addresses the identified SQL injection vulnerabilities through proper input validation and parameterized query construction. Network segmentation and access controls should be implemented to limit the scope of potential exploitation, particularly restricting access to the Kace appliance to authorized personnel only. Regular security assessments and penetration testing should be conducted to identify additional vulnerabilities within the appliance's web interface. The implementation of web application firewalls and database activity monitoring can help detect and prevent exploitation attempts. Security teams should also review and restrict the permissions assigned to 'User Console Only' roles to minimize the potential impact of compromised accounts. This vulnerability aligns with ATT&CK technique T1071.004 for application layer protocol, and represents a classic example of insufficient input validation that violates security best practices established in NIST SP 800-160 and OWASP Top Ten categories. Organizations should also consider implementing database query auditing and privilege separation to reduce the potential impact of such vulnerabilities in their environments.