CVE-2019-25029 in Director
Summary
by MITRE • 05/26/2021
In Versa Director, the command injection is an attack in which the goal is execution of arbitrary commands on the host operating system via a vulnerable application. Command injection attacks are possible when an application passes unsafe user supplied data (forms, cookies, HTTP headers etc.) to a system shell. In this attack, the attacker-supplied operating system commands are usually executed with the privileges of the vulnerable application. Command injection attacks are possible largely due to insufficient input validation.
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Analysis
by VulDB Data Team • 05/29/2021
CVE-2019-25029 represents a critical command injection vulnerability within Versa Director, a network security management platform that provides centralized policy management and configuration for network security devices. This vulnerability stems from inadequate input validation mechanisms within the application's processing of user-supplied data, creating an exploitable condition where malicious commands can be executed on the underlying host operating system. The flaw specifically manifests when the application fails to properly sanitize or validate data received from external sources such as web forms, HTTP headers, or other user-controllable inputs before incorporating them into system shell commands.
The technical exploitation of this vulnerability follows established patterns outlined in CWE-77 and CWE-88, which categorize command injection as a serious weakness in software applications. Attackers can leverage this vulnerability by crafting malicious input that, when processed by the vulnerable application, gets interpreted and executed by the underlying operating system shell. This allows adversaries to run arbitrary commands with the privileges of the application process, which typically runs with elevated permissions to manage network security policies. The attack vector demonstrates characteristics consistent with the ATT&CK framework's T1059.001 technique for Command and Scripting Interpreter, where adversaries use legitimate system commands to execute malicious code.
The operational impact of this vulnerability extends beyond simple privilege escalation, as it provides attackers with comprehensive control over the affected system. Successful exploitation can enable attackers to install malware, establish persistence mechanisms, exfiltrate sensitive configuration data, or use the compromised system as a pivot point for attacking other network devices. Network security administrators may find their centralized management platform compromised, potentially leading to unauthorized policy changes that could affect the entire network infrastructure. The vulnerability particularly threatens environments where Versa Director serves as a central point for managing multiple security devices, as compromise of this system could provide attackers with access to critical network security controls.
Mitigation strategies for CVE-2019-25029 should focus on implementing robust input validation and sanitization mechanisms throughout the application's data processing pipeline. Organizations should ensure that all user-supplied data undergoes strict validation before being processed or passed to system commands, implementing proper parameterization techniques that separate command structure from command data. Network segmentation and access control measures can help limit the potential impact if exploitation occurs, while regular security updates and patches should be deployed immediately upon availability. The remediation approach should align with security best practices such as those outlined in the OWASP Top Ten and NIST Cybersecurity Framework, emphasizing defense in depth strategies that include both application-level protections and network-level monitoring to detect anomalous command execution patterns that might indicate exploitation attempts.