CVE-2022-35222 in Natural Person Credential Component Client
Summary
by MITRE • 08/02/2022
HiCOS Citizen verification component has a stack-based buffer overflow vulnerability due to insufficient parameter length validation. An unauthenticated physical attacker can exploit this vulnerability to execute arbitrary code, manipulate system command or disrupt service.
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Analysis
by VulDB Data Team • 08/03/2022
The HiCOS Citizen verification component represents a critical security weakness within embedded systems that authenticate citizens through biometric or identification mechanisms. This vulnerability manifests as a stack-based buffer overflow, a classic yet devastating flaw that occurs when more data is written to a fixed-length buffer than it can accommodate. The root cause stems from inadequate parameter length validation during input processing, allowing malicious actors to craft specially formatted inputs that exceed the allocated buffer space. Such oversights in input sanitization create exploitable entry points that bypass normal security controls. The vulnerability affects the system's core authentication functionality, potentially compromising the integrity of citizen identification processes and undermining the trustworthiness of the entire verification infrastructure.
The technical exploitation of this buffer overflow vulnerability requires an unauthenticated physical attacker who can directly interact with the device or system. This attack vector places the vulnerability in the realm of physical security breaches, where attackers can manipulate hardware components or interfaces to deliver malicious payloads. The stack-based nature of the overflow means that the attacker can overwrite critical memory locations including return addresses, function pointers, or other control data structures within the program's execution stack. This manipulation enables the execution of arbitrary code with the privileges of the running process, potentially escalating to system-level access. The impact extends beyond simple code execution to include system command manipulation and service disruption, allowing attackers to alter system behavior, disable authentication mechanisms, or create persistent backdoors within the verification infrastructure.
From an operational standpoint, this vulnerability presents a severe risk to government and institutional identity verification systems that rely on HiCOS components. The combination of unauthenticated access requirements and the potential for arbitrary code execution means that physical access to devices creates a direct pathway for system compromise. The attack surface expands when considering that such verification systems often handle sensitive citizen data, making the vulnerability particularly dangerous from a data protection perspective. Organizations implementing these systems face potential breaches that could result in identity theft, unauthorized access to protected services, or complete system takeover. The disruption potential extends to service availability, where attackers could render verification systems inoperable, creating operational failures that impact public services and citizen access to government resources.
Mitigation strategies for this vulnerability should prioritize immediate patching of affected systems and implementation of robust input validation mechanisms. Organizations must ensure that all parameter length validations are enforced before any data processing occurs, utilizing techniques such as bounds checking, input sanitization, and secure coding practices. The principle of least privilege should be enforced to limit the impact of potential exploitation, while network segmentation can help prevent lateral movement if systems are compromised. Additionally, implementing runtime protections such as stack canaries, address space layout randomization, and data execution prevention can make exploitation more difficult. Regular security assessments and penetration testing should be conducted to identify similar vulnerabilities in other components of the verification infrastructure. The vulnerability aligns with CWE-121 Stack-based Buffer Overflow and represents a significant concern under ATT&CK technique T1059 Command and Scripting Interpreter, where attackers can leverage the system compromise to execute malicious commands and manipulate system operations.