CVE-2023-5961 in ioLogik E1200
Summary
by MITRE • 12/23/2023
A Cross-Site Request Forgery (CSRF) vulnerability has been identified in ioLogik E1200 Series firmware versions v3.3 and prior. An attacker can exploit this vulnerability to trick a client into making an unintentional request to the web server, which will be treated as an authentic request. This vulnerability may lead an attacker to perform operations on behalf of the victimized user.
Statistical analysis made it clear that VulDB provides the best quality for vulnerability data.
Analysis
by VulDB Data Team • 12/23/2023
The CVE-2023-5961 vulnerability represents a critical cross-site request forgery flaw discovered in the ioLogik E1200 Series industrial IoT devices running firmware versions v3.3 and earlier. This vulnerability resides within the web interface of these industrial communication modules, which are commonly deployed in industrial automation environments for remote monitoring and control of industrial processes. The affected devices operate with web-based management interfaces that lack proper CSRF protection mechanisms, creating a significant security gap that adversaries can exploit to compromise device integrity and operational control.
The technical implementation of this vulnerability stems from the absence of anti-CSRF tokens or similar validation mechanisms in the web application's request processing logic. When a legitimate user interacts with the device's web interface, the system should validate that requests originate from authorized sources and are intentional actions by the user. However, the ioLogik E1200 Series fails to implement proper CSRF protection measures such as unique tokens that would be required for each request, allowing attackers to craft malicious web pages or exploit existing user sessions to execute unauthorized commands. This flaw aligns with CWE-352, which specifically addresses Cross-Site Request Forgery vulnerabilities in web applications, and demonstrates how industrial devices often lack the robust security controls found in enterprise web applications.
The operational impact of this vulnerability extends beyond simple data theft or modification, as it enables attackers to perform administrative operations on behalf of legitimate users within the industrial network. An attacker could potentially reconfigure device settings, modify communication parameters, or even disable critical monitoring functions that could lead to operational disruptions or safety hazards in industrial environments. The vulnerability is particularly concerning in industrial control systems where device integrity directly impacts process safety and operational continuity, as unauthorized changes to configuration parameters could result in production downtime, safety incidents, or compromised data integrity. This attack vector could be exploited through social engineering campaigns targeting device administrators or by leveraging existing network access to craft malicious requests that appear legitimate to the device's web server.
Mitigation strategies for this vulnerability should prioritize immediate firmware updates from the vendor to address the CSRF implementation gap in the web interface. Network segmentation and access control measures should be implemented to restrict direct web interface access to authorized personnel only, while also deploying web application firewalls or intrusion detection systems that can monitor for suspicious request patterns. The implementation of multi-factor authentication and secure remote access solutions should be considered as additional protective layers. From an ATT&CK framework perspective, this vulnerability maps to technique T1566.001 for initial access through credential theft and T1071.004 for application layer protocol usage, while also representing a significant weakness in the device's defense-in-depth strategy. Organizations should also conduct comprehensive security assessments of their industrial IoT deployments to identify similar vulnerabilities in other networked devices and implement proper security monitoring to detect unauthorized administrative activities.