CVE-2023-37481 in Fides
Summary
by MITRE • 07/18/2023
Fides is an open-source privacy engineering platform for managing data privacy requests and privacy regulations. The Fides webserver is vulnerable to a type of Denial of Service (DoS) attack. Attackers can exploit this vulnerability to upload zip files containing malicious SVG bombs (similar to a billion laughs attack), causing resource exhaustion in Admin UI browser tabs and creating a persistent denial of service of the 'new connector' page (`datastore-connection/new`). This vulnerability affects Fides versions `2.11.0` through `2.15.1`. Exploitation is limited to users with elevated privileges with the `CONNECTOR_TEMPLATE_REGISTER` scope, which includes root users and users with the owner role. The vulnerability has been patched in Fides version `2.16.0`. Users are advised to upgrade to this version or later to secure their systems against this threat. There is no known workaround to remediate this vulnerability without upgrading.
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Analysis
by VulDB Data Team • 08/09/2023
The vulnerability identified as CVE-2023-37481 affects Fides, an open-source privacy engineering platform designed to manage data privacy requests and regulatory compliance. This platform serves as a critical component for organizations implementing privacy controls and managing user consent. The vulnerability manifests as a denial of service condition that specifically targets the webserver's handling of file uploads within the administrative user interface. The attack vector involves uploading specially crafted zip files containing malicious SVG files that function as resource exhaustion payloads, similar to the well-known billion laughs attack pattern where compressed data expands exponentially during processing.
The technical flaw resides in the platform's insufficient validation and resource management during the processing of uploaded files, particularly SVG content within zip archives. When the administrative UI attempts to render or validate these malicious files, the SVG bombs trigger excessive memory consumption and processing cycles that can overwhelm browser tab resources. This creates a persistent denial of service condition specifically affecting the datastore-connection/new page where users attempt to register new connectors. The vulnerability operates at the application layer and requires specific privilege levels to exploit, limiting its impact to authenticated users possessing the CONNECTOR_TEMPLATE_REGISTER scope, which encompasses root users and those with owner roles within the system.
The operational impact of this vulnerability extends beyond simple service interruption as it creates a persistent threat that can affect administrative workflows and privacy compliance operations. Attackers with elevated privileges can systematically disrupt the platform's functionality by repeatedly uploading these malicious files, forcing administrators to restart browser sessions or potentially the entire webserver to restore normal operations. The attack requires no specialized tools beyond standard user credentials with appropriate permissions, making it particularly concerning for organizations where administrative access is relatively common or where privilege escalation attacks have occurred. This vulnerability directly impacts the availability aspect of the confidentiality-integrity-availability (CIA) triad, potentially disrupting privacy management processes and data governance workflows.
Security mitigations for this vulnerability primarily involve upgrading to Fides version 2.16.0 or later, which includes patches addressing the resource exhaustion handling during SVG file processing. Organizations should implement immediate upgrade procedures for all instances running affected versions between 2.11.0 and 2.15.1. While no workaround exists that can fully remediate the vulnerability without upgrading, administrators can implement additional access controls to limit who possesses the CONNECTOR_TEMPLATE_REGISTER scope, thereby reducing the attack surface. This vulnerability aligns with CWE-400, which covers excessive resource consumption, and relates to ATT&CK technique T1499.004 for network denial of service attacks. The patch addresses the root cause by implementing proper input validation, resource limits during file processing, and improved error handling for malformed SVG content. Organizations should also conduct thorough security assessments of their Fides deployments to ensure complete remediation and monitor for potential exploitation attempts in their logs.