CVE-2019-3762 in Data Protection Central
Summary
by MITRE
Data Protection Central versions 1.0, 1.0.1, 18.1, 18.2, and 19.1 contains an Improper Certificate Chain of Trust Vulnerability. A remote unauthenticated attacker could potentially exploit this vulnerability by obtaining a CA signed certificate from Data Protection Central to impersonate a valid system to compromise the integrity of data.
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Analysis
by VulDB Data Team • 04/17/2024
The vulnerability described in CVE-2019-3762 represents a critical weakness in the certificate chain validation mechanisms of Data Protection Central versions 1.0, 1.0.1, 18.1, 18.2, and 19.1. This flaw falls under the CWE-295 category of Improper Certificate Chain of Trust, which specifically addresses the failure to properly validate certificate trust chains during secure communications. The vulnerability stems from the system's inability to properly verify the complete certificate path from the end-entity certificate to a trusted root certificate authority, creating an exploitable gap in the cryptographic security framework.
The technical implementation of this vulnerability allows remote attackers to bypass the intended certificate validation process by obtaining a certificate that appears legitimate but has been signed by a certificate authority that the system incorrectly trusts. This weakness enables attackers to create a false identity within the system's trust model, effectively allowing them to impersonate authorized systems or services. The vulnerability is particularly dangerous because it operates without requiring authentication, making it accessible to any remote attacker who can obtain a CA-signed certificate through legitimate means or by exploiting weaknesses in the certificate issuance process.
From an operational perspective, this vulnerability compromises the fundamental integrity of data protection mechanisms within the affected systems. Attackers can exploit this weakness to perform man-in-the-middle attacks, decrypt sensitive communications, or manipulate data flows between components that rely on the certificate chain for authentication and encryption. The impact extends beyond simple data theft to include potential system compromise, data corruption, and complete loss of trust in the cryptographic infrastructure. This vulnerability directly maps to attack techniques outlined in the MITRE ATT&CK framework under the T1552 category of "Unsecured Credentials" and T1046 category of "Network Service Scanning" as attackers would need to establish trust relationships before executing more sophisticated attacks.
The security implications of this vulnerability are severe and multifaceted, as it undermines the entire certificate-based trust model that modern security systems rely upon. Organizations using affected versions of Data Protection Central face significant risk of unauthorized access to protected data, potential data breaches, and complete compromise of their cryptographic security posture. The vulnerability creates a persistent backdoor that can be exploited repeatedly without detection, making it particularly dangerous for long-term operations. Mitigation strategies should include immediate patching to the latest versions of Data Protection Central, implementation of strict certificate validation policies, and comprehensive monitoring of certificate issuance and usage patterns to detect potential exploitation attempts.