CVE-2021-37201 in SINEC NMS
Summary
by MITRE • 09/14/2021
A vulnerability has been identified in SINEC NMS (All versions < V1.0 SP1). The web interface of affected devices is vulnerable to a Cross-Site Request Forgery (CSRF) attack. This could allow an attacker to manipulate the SINEC NMS configuration by tricking an unsuspecting user with administrative privileges to click on a malicious link.
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Analysis
by VulDB Data Team • 09/17/2021
The vulnerability CVE-2021-37201 affects SINEC NMS software versions prior to V1.0 SP1, representing a critical security flaw in the web interface component of this industrial network management system. This vulnerability falls under the category of Cross-Site Request Forgery as classified by CWE-352, which occurs when an attacker tricks a victim into executing unintended actions on a web application where they are authenticated. The affected SINEC NMS system is designed for industrial network management and monitoring, making it a potential target for sophisticated cyber attacks that could compromise critical infrastructure operations.
The technical implementation of this CSRF vulnerability stems from the absence of proper validation mechanisms in the web interface's request processing. When an authenticated administrator interacts with the SINEC NMS interface, the system should verify that requests originate from legitimate sources and contain appropriate security tokens to prevent unauthorized modifications. However, the vulnerable implementation fails to enforce such protections, allowing malicious actors to craft specially crafted requests that appear to come from legitimate administrative sessions. This flaw specifically impacts the configuration management capabilities of the system, enabling attackers to manipulate network settings, user permissions, and other critical operational parameters without requiring authentication credentials.
The operational impact of this vulnerability extends beyond simple unauthorized access, as it represents a significant risk to industrial control systems and network infrastructure management. An attacker who successfully exploits this CSRF vulnerability could potentially disrupt network operations, modify security policies, alter network configurations, or even gain unauthorized access to connected industrial devices. The attack vector relies on social engineering techniques where administrators are tricked into clicking malicious links, making it particularly dangerous in environments where administrators frequently interact with external web content. This vulnerability aligns with ATT&CK technique T1566.001 for initial access through spearphishing attachments and could facilitate broader compromise of industrial control systems.
Organizations utilizing SINEC NMS software should immediately implement mitigations including updating to version V1.0 SP1 or later, which contains the necessary security patches to address this vulnerability. Network administrators should also consider implementing additional security controls such as web application firewalls, monitoring for suspicious administrative activities, and conducting regular security assessments of industrial network management systems. The vulnerability demonstrates the importance of maintaining current security patches for industrial control systems and highlights the need for comprehensive security awareness training to prevent successful social engineering attacks that exploit CSRF vulnerabilities in operational technology environments.