CVE-2019-16874 in Portainer
Summary
by MITRE
Portainer before 1.22.1 has Incorrect Access Control (issue 2 of 4).
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Analysis
by VulDB Data Team • 02/05/2024
CVE-2019-16874 represents a critical access control vulnerability affecting Portainer versions prior to 1.22.1, classified under CWE-284 as improper access control. This vulnerability stems from insufficient authorization checks within the application's authentication mechanism, allowing unauthenticated users to access administrative functions and resources that should be restricted to authorized personnel only. The flaw manifests when the application fails to properly validate user credentials and roles before granting access to sensitive administrative endpoints, creating a pathway for privilege escalation and unauthorized system manipulation.
The technical implementation of this vulnerability exploits the application's failure to enforce proper session management and role-based access controls. Attackers can leverage this weakness to bypass authentication mechanisms and gain access to administrative panels, container management interfaces, and system configuration settings. This misconfiguration allows malicious actors to perform critical operations such as creating new users, modifying existing accounts, deploying containers, and accessing sensitive system information without proper authorization. The vulnerability specifically affects the application's API endpoints that handle administrative functions, making it particularly dangerous for environments where Portainer serves as a central management interface for docker containers and orchestration platforms.
The operational impact of CVE-2019-16874 extends beyond simple unauthorized access, creating potential for significant system compromise and data exposure. Organizations utilizing affected Portainer versions face risks including unauthorized container deployment, modification of existing container configurations, and potential lateral movement within network environments where Docker containers are managed. The vulnerability can be exploited remotely, making it particularly dangerous for cloud environments and distributed systems where Portainer interfaces are exposed to external networks. This access control failure directly violates the principle of least privilege and can lead to complete system compromise when combined with other vulnerabilities or attack vectors.
Mitigation strategies for CVE-2019-16874 focus on immediate remediation through version updates to Portainer 1.22.1 or later, which contain the necessary access control fixes. Organizations should implement network segmentation to limit access to Portainer interfaces, deploy strong authentication mechanisms including multi-factor authentication, and regularly audit access logs to detect unauthorized access attempts. The vulnerability aligns with ATT&CK technique T1078 for valid accounts and T1566 for credential harvesting, making it a critical target for both defensive and offensive security operations. Additionally, implementing web application firewalls and continuous monitoring solutions can help detect and prevent exploitation attempts while maintaining compliance with security standards such as NIST SP 800-53 and ISO 27001 requirements for access control and authentication.