CVE-2019-1972 in Enterprise NFV Infrastructure Software
Summary
by MITRE
A vulnerability the Cisco Enterprise NFV Infrastructure Software (NFVIS) restricted CLI could allow an authenticated, local attacker with valid administrator-level credentials to elevate privileges and execute arbitrary commands on the underlying operating system as root. The vulnerability is due to insufficient restrictions during the execution of an affected CLI command. An attacker could exploit this vulnerability by leveraging the insufficient restrictions during the execution of an affected command. A successful exploit could allow the attacker to elevate privileges and execute arbitrary commands on the underlying operating system as root.
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Analysis
by VulDB Data Team • 11/21/2023
The vulnerability identified as CVE-2019-1972 affects Cisco Enterprise NFV Infrastructure Software (NFVIS) and represents a critical privilege escalation flaw that undermines the security posture of network virtualization environments. This vulnerability resides within the command-line interface implementation of the NFVIS platform, specifically targeting the restricted CLI functionality that should normally enforce strict access controls for administrative operations. The flaw allows authenticated attackers with administrator-level credentials to bypass intended security boundaries and gain root-level access to the underlying operating system, fundamentally compromising the integrity and confidentiality of the entire infrastructure.
The technical root cause of this vulnerability stems from inadequate input validation and privilege restriction mechanisms within the CLI command execution framework. When legitimate administrator users execute specific commands through the restricted CLI interface, the system fails to properly validate or sanitize the command parameters, creating an execution path where maliciously crafted inputs can be interpreted and executed with elevated privileges. This represents a classic privilege escalation vulnerability that aligns with CWE-264, which encompasses issues related to permissions, privileges, and access controls in software systems. The insufficient restrictions during command execution create a direct pathway for attackers to escalate their privileges from administrator level to root access, effectively removing any protective barriers between the user and the underlying operating system.
The operational impact of this vulnerability extends beyond simple privilege escalation, as it provides attackers with complete control over the target system and its resources. Once elevated to root privileges, an attacker can execute arbitrary commands, modify system files, install malicious software, access sensitive data, and potentially use the compromised system as a launch point for further attacks within the network infrastructure. This vulnerability particularly affects virtualized network functions and infrastructure deployments where NFVIS serves as the management platform, potentially allowing attackers to compromise entire network virtualization domains. The implications are severe for organizations relying on NFVIS for their service provider or enterprise network virtualization needs, as the compromise of a single administrative account could result in complete system takeover.
Organizations should implement immediate mitigations including applying the latest security patches released by Cisco to address this vulnerability, implementing strict access control policies for administrative accounts, and conducting comprehensive audits of privileged user activities. Network segmentation and monitoring of CLI access should be enhanced to detect anomalous command execution patterns that might indicate exploitation attempts. The vulnerability demonstrates the critical importance of proper privilege separation and input validation in security-critical interfaces, aligning with ATT&CK technique T1068 which focuses on local privilege escalation. Security teams should also consider implementing additional controls such as command logging, privileged access management systems, and regular security assessments to prevent exploitation of similar vulnerabilities in other components of their network infrastructure.