CVE-2024-34620 in Samsung
Summary
by MITRE • 08/07/2024
Improper privilege management in SumeNNService prior to SMR Aug-2024 Release 1 allows local attackers to start privileged service.
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Analysis
by VulDB Data Team • 08/13/2024
The vulnerability identified as CVE-2024-34620 represents a critical weakness in the privilege management implementation of SumeNNService within devices running software versions prior to the SMR August 2024 Release 1. This flaw resides in the service's inability to properly enforce access controls and privilege boundaries, creating an avenue for local attackers to escalate their privileges and initiate services that should normally be restricted to administrative users or system processes. The issue manifests through improper validation of service start requests, where the system fails to adequately verify whether the requesting entity possesses the necessary authorization levels to execute privileged operations.
The technical nature of this vulnerability aligns with CWE-276, which addresses improper privilege management and inadequate access control mechanisms. Attackers exploiting this weakness can leverage local system access to manipulate service execution parameters and gain elevated privileges without proper authentication or authorization. The flaw operates at the system-level service management interface, where legitimate privilege escalation pathways are bypassed due to insufficient validation checks. This represents a fundamental breakdown in the principle of least privilege, where services should only execute with the minimum permissions necessary for their operation, yet instead allow for broader access than intended.
From an operational impact perspective, this vulnerability enables local attackers to potentially gain unauthorized administrative access to the device, which could lead to complete system compromise. The attack vector requires only local system access, making it particularly dangerous as it does not depend on network exposure or remote exploitation. Once exploited, attackers can manipulate system services, potentially leading to data exfiltration, system modification, or further lateral movement within networked environments. The vulnerability affects devices that have not received the security patches included in the SMR August 2024 Release 1, indicating that organizations maintaining older software versions remain at risk.
Security professionals should implement immediate mitigations including prompt deployment of the SMR August 2024 Release 1 patch, which contains the necessary privilege management fixes. Organizations should also conduct comprehensive vulnerability assessments to identify systems running affected software versions and ensure proper access controls are enforced. The mitigation strategy should align with ATT&CK technique T1068, which addresses local privilege escalation, as this vulnerability directly enables such attack paths. Additional defensive measures include implementing robust service monitoring, enforcing strict access controls, and maintaining up-to-date system inventories to track vulnerable components. Regular security audits should verify that privilege management mechanisms function correctly and that unauthorized service execution attempts are properly detected and blocked.