CVE-2018-7114 in Intelligent Management Center
Summary
by MITRE
HPE Intelligent Management Center (IMC) prior to IMC PLAT 7.3 (E0605P06) is vulnerable to remote buffer overflow in dbman leading to code execution. This problem is resolved in IMC PLAT 7.3 (E0605P06) or subsequent versions.
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Analysis
by VulDB Data Team • 06/12/2023
The vulnerability identified as CVE-2018-7114 affects HPE Intelligent Management Center (IMC) platforms running versions prior to IMC PLAT 7.3 (E0605P06), representing a critical security flaw that exposes organizations to remote code execution risks. This vulnerability specifically targets the dbman component within the IMC platform, which serves as a database management service responsible for handling various administrative functions and data processing tasks. The flaw exists within the software's handling of user-supplied input, creating an exploitable condition that allows attackers to execute arbitrary code on the affected system with elevated privileges.
The technical nature of this vulnerability constitutes a buffer overflow condition that occurs within the dbman service, which operates as a core component of the HPE IMC platform. Buffer overflow vulnerabilities typically arise when a program writes more data to a fixed-length buffer than it can accommodate, causing adjacent memory to be overwritten. In this case, the vulnerability manifests when the dbman service processes malformed input data without proper bounds checking, allowing an attacker to craft specially crafted payloads that exceed the allocated buffer space. This overflow can be leveraged to overwrite critical memory segments including return addresses, function pointers, or other control data structures that govern program execution flow, ultimately enabling attackers to redirect program execution to malicious code.
The operational impact of this vulnerability extends beyond simple remote code execution, as it provides attackers with the capability to gain full administrative control over the affected HPE IMC platform. Since the IMC platform serves as a centralized management system for network infrastructure, successful exploitation could lead to complete compromise of network monitoring capabilities, unauthorized access to sensitive network data, and potential lateral movement within the network environment. The vulnerability affects organizations that rely on HPE IMC for network management, operations, and security monitoring, making it particularly concerning for enterprise environments where network infrastructure management is critical. The remote nature of the exploit means that attackers can leverage this vulnerability from outside the network perimeter without requiring physical access or prior authentication, significantly expanding the attack surface and potential impact.
Organizations affected by CVE-2018-7114 should prioritize immediate remediation through the application of the vendor-provided patch included in IMC PLAT 7.3 (E0605P06) or subsequent versions. The vulnerability aligns with CWE-121, which describes the classic buffer overflow condition, and represents a significant risk to the confidentiality, integrity, and availability of network management systems. From an adversarial perspective, this vulnerability maps to ATT&CK technique T1059.007 for command and scripting interpreter, and T1068 for exploit for privilege escalation, as attackers would need to establish initial access and then escalate privileges to achieve full system compromise. Security teams should implement network segmentation to limit access to the affected IMC systems, monitor for suspicious network activity related to the dbman service, and ensure that all network management infrastructure is regularly updated with the latest security patches. The vulnerability also highlights the importance of maintaining up-to-date inventory of network management systems and implementing proper vulnerability management processes to identify and remediate similar issues across the enterprise environment.