CVE-2019-19989 in Visual Access Manager
Summary
by MITRE
An issue was discovered in Selesta Visual Access Manager (VAM) 4.15.0 through 4.29. Several PHP pages, and other type of files, are reachable by any user without checking for user identity and authorization.
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Analysis
by VulDB Data Team • 02/27/2020
The vulnerability identified as CVE-2019-19989 affects Selesta Visual Access Manager version 4.15.0 through 4.29, representing a critical authorization flaw that undermines the security posture of the application. This issue stems from insufficient authentication and authorization controls within the web application's access management system, allowing any unauthenticated user to gain access to sensitive PHP pages and other file types that should typically require proper user identification and authorization. The flaw exists at the application logic level where access control mechanisms fail to validate user credentials before granting access to protected resources, creating a pathway for unauthorized information disclosure and potential system compromise.
The technical implementation of this vulnerability demonstrates a classic lack of input validation and access control enforcement within the application's request handling process. When users attempt to access restricted resources through the web interface, the application fails to properly verify user sessions or authenticate requests before serving content. This weakness can be categorized under CWE-285 which addresses improper authorization in software systems, specifically manifesting as insufficient access control checks. The vulnerability operates at the application layer where PHP scripts and other file types are directly accessible through URL manipulation or direct access attempts, bypassing the normal authentication flow that should validate user credentials and session tokens.
From an operational impact perspective, this vulnerability exposes organizations to significant security risks including unauthorized data access, potential information leakage, and possible system compromise. Attackers can exploit this flaw to access sensitive configuration files, user data, administrative interfaces, and other protected resources without requiring valid credentials. The exposure affects the confidentiality and integrity of the system as unauthorized parties can potentially view, modify, or exfiltrate sensitive information. This vulnerability aligns with ATT&CK technique T1078 which covers valid accounts and credential access, as it allows adversaries to gain access to resources that should be protected by proper authentication mechanisms.
Organizations should implement immediate mitigations including enforcing proper authentication checks on all application endpoints, implementing robust session management controls, and ensuring that all file access requests are properly validated against user permissions. The recommended approach involves configuring the web server to prevent direct access to sensitive files, implementing proper access control lists, and ensuring that all application pages require valid session tokens or authentication headers. Additionally, regular security audits should be conducted to identify and remediate similar authorization flaws, and the application should be updated to the latest version where this vulnerability has been addressed. Network segmentation and monitoring solutions should also be deployed to detect and alert on suspicious access patterns that may indicate exploitation attempts against this vulnerability.