CVE-2020-9690 in Magento
Summary
by MITRE
Magento versions 2.3.5-p1 and earlier, and 2.3.5-p1 and earlier have an observable timing discrepancy vulnerability. Successful exploitation could lead to signature verification bypass.
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Analysis
by VulDB Data Team • 11/06/2020
The vulnerability identified as CVE-2020-9690 affects Magento e-commerce platforms version 2.3.5-p1 and earlier across both major releases. This timing discrepancy vulnerability represents a critical security flaw that undermines the integrity of signature verification mechanisms within the platform. The issue stems from the implementation of cryptographic operations that do not execute in constant time, creating measurable differences in processing duration that can be exploited by attackers.
This vulnerability operates through a timing attack vector where malicious actors can observe the time taken to process cryptographic signatures and use this information to infer sensitive data or bypass authentication mechanisms. The flaw specifically impacts the signature verification process, which is fundamental to ensuring that transactions and administrative operations are legitimate and authorized. The timing discrepancies occur during the comparison of cryptographic hashes or digital signatures, where the system's response time varies depending on the input values being compared.
The operational impact of this vulnerability extends beyond simple authentication bypasses to potentially compromise the entire security architecture of affected Magento installations. Attackers could leverage this weakness to perform unauthorized administrative actions, manipulate transaction data, or gain persistent access to sensitive customer information. The vulnerability's exploitation requires careful timing analysis and network proximity, but once successful, it provides attackers with significant privileges within the e-commerce platform. This issue particularly affects online retailers handling sensitive financial and personal data, making it a prime target for cybercriminals seeking to exploit e-commerce systems.
From a cybersecurity framework perspective, this vulnerability maps to CWE-203 Observable Timing Discrepancy, which specifically addresses timing variations that can leak information about cryptographic operations. The attack surface aligns with ATT&CK technique T1211 Lateral Movement through credential access, as successful exploitation could lead to privilege escalation and unauthorized access to administrative interfaces. Organizations should prioritize immediate patching of affected Magento installations, as the vulnerability provides a pathway for attackers to bypass security controls designed to protect against unauthorized access.
Mitigation strategies should include immediate deployment of security patches provided by Magento, which address the timing discrepancy in cryptographic comparison operations. Additionally, organizations should implement network segmentation to limit access to administrative interfaces, deploy intrusion detection systems to monitor for timing-based attack patterns, and conduct regular security assessments to identify similar timing vulnerabilities in other applications. The remediation process should also include monitoring for anomalous authentication patterns that might indicate exploitation attempts and implementing additional layers of authentication such as multi-factor authentication to reduce the risk of successful attacks.