CVE-2019-15979 in Data Center Network Manager
Summary
by MITRE
Multiple vulnerabilities in the REST and SOAP API endpoints of Cisco Data Center Network Manager (DCNM) could allow an authenticated, remote attacker with administrative privileges on the DCNM application to inject arbitrary commands on the underlying operating system (OS). For more information about these vulnerabilities, see the Details section of this advisory. Note: The severity of these vulnerabilities is aggravated by the vulnerabilities described in the Cisco Data Center Network Manager Authentication Bypass Vulnerabilities advisory, published simultaneously with this one.
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Analysis
by VulDB Data Team • 03/19/2024
The vulnerability identified as CVE-2019-15979 represents a critical command injection flaw within Cisco Data Center Network Manager's REST and SOAP API endpoints. This issue affects the enterprise network management platform that administrators use to oversee data center networking infrastructure. The vulnerability is particularly concerning because it requires only administrative privileges on the DCNM application itself, meaning an attacker who has already gained access to the management interface can escalate their privileges to execute arbitrary commands on the underlying operating system. This represents a severe privilege escalation vector that can compromise the entire network management infrastructure.
The technical implementation of this vulnerability stems from insufficient input validation and sanitization within the API processing logic. When the DCNM application processes requests through its REST and SOAP interfaces, it fails to properly sanitize user-supplied parameters before passing them to system commands. This allows an authenticated attacker to inject malicious command sequences that are then executed with the privileges of the DCNM application process. The attack surface is expanded by the fact that both REST and SOAP endpoints are affected, providing multiple potential vectors for exploitation. This flaw aligns with CWE-77 and CWE-89 categories, which specifically address command injection and SQL injection vulnerabilities respectively, though the command injection aspect is the primary concern here.
The operational impact of this vulnerability extends far beyond simple privilege escalation. Once an attacker successfully exploits this vulnerability, they gain complete control over the underlying operating system where the DCNM application resides. This means they can access sensitive configuration data, modify network policies, create backdoor accounts, or even pivot to other systems within the network infrastructure. The vulnerability is particularly dangerous in enterprise environments where DCNM is used to manage critical network infrastructure, as it provides a pathway for attackers to compromise the entire network management ecosystem. The simultaneous publication of this vulnerability alongside authentication bypass issues creates a particularly dangerous attack scenario where an attacker could first gain administrative access and then escalate to full system compromise.
Organizations should implement immediate mitigations including applying the latest security patches from Cisco, which address the command injection flaws in the API endpoints. Network segmentation should be implemented to limit access to the DCNM application to only authorized administrators, and additional authentication controls such as multi-factor authentication should be enforced. Monitoring should be enhanced to detect unusual API activity patterns that might indicate exploitation attempts. The ATT&CK framework categorizes this type of vulnerability under T1059 Command and Scripting Interpreter and T1068 Exploitation for Privilege Escalation, making it a critical target for defensive measures. Organizations should also consider implementing API gateway controls and input validation rules to prevent malicious command sequences from reaching the application backend, while maintaining comprehensive audit logging to track all administrative activities within the DCNM environment.