CVE-2020-3242 in UCS Director
Summary
by MITRE
A vulnerability in the REST API of Cisco UCS Director could allow an authenticated, remote attacker with administrative privileges to obtain confidential information from an affected device. The vulnerability exists because confidential information is returned as part of an API response. An attacker could exploit this vulnerability by sending a crafted request to the API. A successful exploit could allow the attacker to obtain the API key of another user, which would allow the attacker to impersonate the account of that user on the affected device. To exploit this vulnerability, the attacker must have administrative privileges on the device.
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Analysis
by VulDB Data Team • 10/24/2020
The vulnerability identified as CVE-2020-3242 resides within the REST API implementation of Cisco UCS Director, a comprehensive infrastructure management platform designed for data center operations. This critical security flaw represents a classic case of information disclosure through improper API response handling, where sensitive data is inadvertently exposed to authenticated users. The vulnerability specifically affects the authentication and authorization mechanisms within the platform's web services interface, creating a pathway for privilege escalation and unauthorized access to confidential system resources.
The technical exploitation of this vulnerability occurs through a carefully crafted API request that triggers the system to return confidential information in the response payload. According to CWE-200, this constitutes an information exposure vulnerability where the system fails to properly sanitize or restrict sensitive data in API responses. The flaw allows an authenticated attacker with administrative privileges to extract API keys belonging to other users, effectively compromising the entire user access control framework. This particular vulnerability aligns with ATT&CK technique T1566, specifically the credential access sub-technique T1566.001, as it enables an attacker to harvest valid credentials from the system.
The operational impact of this vulnerability extends beyond simple information disclosure, as it fundamentally undermines the security model of the Cisco UCS Director platform. When an attacker successfully exploits this vulnerability, they gain the ability to impersonate legitimate users with administrative privileges, potentially leading to complete system compromise. The attack vector requires only an existing administrative account, making it particularly dangerous as it leverages legitimate access rather than requiring additional reconnaissance or exploitation techniques. This vulnerability creates a persistent threat vector that could remain undetected for extended periods, as the attacker operates under the guise of an authorized user.
Mitigation strategies for CVE-2020-3242 should focus on implementing proper input validation and output sanitization within the REST API endpoints. Organizations must ensure that API responses do not contain sensitive information such as API keys or authentication tokens, even when accessed by authenticated administrators. Network segmentation and access control measures should be implemented to limit administrative access to the platform, while regular security audits should monitor for unauthorized access patterns. The vulnerability highlights the importance of following secure coding practices and conducting thorough API security testing to prevent information disclosure through response payloads. Additionally, implementing multi-factor authentication and privilege separation can reduce the impact of such vulnerabilities by limiting the scope of potential damage from compromised administrative accounts.