CVE-2022-35799 in Azure Site Recovery VMWare to Azure
Summary
by MITRE • 08/10/2022
Azure Site Recovery Elevation of Privilege Vulnerability. This CVE ID is unique from CVE-2022-35774, CVE-2022-35775, CVE-2022-35780, CVE-2022-35781, CVE-2022-35782, CVE-2022-35783, CVE-2022-35784, CVE-2022-35785, CVE-2022-35786, CVE-2022-35787, CVE-2022-35788, CVE-2022-35789, CVE-2022-35790, CVE-2022-35791, CVE-2022-35800, CVE-2022-35801, CVE-2022-35802, CVE-2022-35807, CVE-2022-35808, CVE-2022-35809, CVE-2022-35810, CVE-2022-35811, CVE-2022-35812, CVE-2022-35813, CVE-2022-35814, CVE-2022-35815, CVE-2022-35816, CVE-2022-35817, CVE-2022-35818, CVE-2022-35819.
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Analysis
by VulDB Data Team • 09/04/2022
The Azure Site Recovery service presents a critical elevation of privilege vulnerability that allows authenticated attackers to escalate their privileges within the Azure environment. This vulnerability specifically affects the recovery services vaults and their associated replication mechanisms, creating a pathway for malicious actors to gain unauthorized access to sensitive data and system resources. The flaw exists within the permission validation and access control mechanisms that govern how users interact with recovery services components, potentially enabling attackers to perform operations beyond their intended authorization levels.
This vulnerability stems from insufficient input validation and improper access control checks within the Azure Site Recovery service implementation. Attackers can exploit this weakness by crafting specific requests that bypass normal authorization protocols, allowing them to execute privileged operations such as modifying replication settings, accessing protected backup data, or manipulating recovery plans. The technical flaw manifests in how the service validates user credentials and permissions during critical operations, particularly when processing requests related to disaster recovery configurations and data replication processes. The vulnerability is classified under CWE-284 which specifically addresses improper access control mechanisms, making it a direct descendant of well-known access control weaknesses in cloud services.
The operational impact of this vulnerability extends beyond simple privilege escalation, as it can lead to complete compromise of the recovery services infrastructure and potentially the broader Azure environment. Organizations using Azure Site Recovery for disaster recovery planning face significant risk when this vulnerability is exploited, as attackers could gain access to critical backup data, manipulate recovery procedures, or even disable protection mechanisms entirely. The attack surface is particularly concerning given that Azure Site Recovery is commonly used for protecting production workloads, making this vulnerability a prime target for attackers seeking to disrupt business continuity or extract sensitive information from backup systems. The implications are further exacerbated by the fact that this vulnerability can be exploited remotely without requiring physical access to the systems involved.
Mitigation strategies for this vulnerability should focus on immediate patching of affected Azure Site Recovery components and implementation of additional monitoring controls. Organizations must ensure they are running the latest Azure updates and security patches that address this specific privilege escalation issue. Network segmentation and additional access controls should be implemented to limit exposure of recovery services vaults to only authorized personnel and systems. Security teams should deploy enhanced monitoring for unusual access patterns and privilege changes within Azure environments, particularly around recovery service operations. The vulnerability aligns with ATT&CK technique T1078 which covers valid accounts and legitimate credentials, as attackers may leverage this vulnerability to obtain elevated privileges through legitimate access channels. Regular security assessments and privileged access management reviews should be conducted to identify and remediate similar access control weaknesses in other Azure services and cloud infrastructure components.