CVE-2024-42397 in Aruba InstantOS
Summary
by MITRE • 08/06/2024
Multiple unauthenticated Denial-of-Service (DoS) vulnerabilities exist in the AP Certificate Management daemon accessed via the PAPI protocol. Successful exploitation of these vulnerabilities results in the ability to interrupt the normal operation of the affected Access Point.
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Analysis
by VulDB Data Team • 08/24/2024
The vulnerability identified as CVE-2024-42397 represents a critical security weakness in wireless network infrastructure components, specifically targeting the AP Certificate Management daemon that operates over the PAPI protocol. This daemon serves as a crucial element in managing digital certificates for access points within enterprise wireless networks, making it a prime target for attackers seeking to disrupt network operations. The vulnerability stems from insufficient authentication mechanisms that allow any external entity to interact with the certificate management functionality without proper verification of identity or authorization status. The PAPI protocol, designed for secure communication between access points and management systems, becomes compromised when the underlying daemon fails to enforce proper access controls, creating an attack surface that adversaries can exploit to cause service interruptions.
The technical implementation flaw manifests as a lack of authentication checks within the AP Certificate Management daemon, enabling unauthenticated attackers to send malicious requests that trigger denial-of-service conditions. This vulnerability operates at the network protocol level where the daemon processes incoming certificate management commands without validating the sender's credentials or permissions. The daemon's failure to implement proper session management and access control mechanisms means that any network traffic directed toward the vulnerable port can potentially trigger the denial-of-service conditions. Attackers can exploit this weakness by crafting specific PAPI protocol messages that cause the daemon to crash or enter an unstable state, effectively rendering the access point unable to function normally and disrupting wireless connectivity for all connected devices.
The operational impact of this vulnerability extends beyond simple service interruption, as it affects the fundamental reliability and availability of wireless network infrastructure. When exploited successfully, the vulnerability can cause complete service disruption for access points, forcing network administrators to perform manual interventions and potentially resulting in significant downtime for wireless services. Organizations relying on continuous wireless connectivity for business operations face potential financial losses and productivity impacts when access points become unavailable due to this vulnerability. The unauthenticated nature of the exploit means that attackers do not require any prior credentials or privileged access to cause disruption, making the vulnerability particularly dangerous in environments where physical access to network infrastructure may be limited or monitored. Network availability is compromised at the access point level, affecting all devices that depend on wireless connectivity for their operations.
Security mitigations for CVE-2024-42397 should focus on implementing strong authentication mechanisms and network segmentation to prevent unauthorized access to the vulnerable daemon. Organizations should ensure that the PAPI protocol endpoints are protected through proper network access controls and that the daemon enforces strict authentication requirements before processing any certificate management requests. The implementation of network segmentation can help isolate vulnerable access points from general network traffic, reducing the attack surface available to potential attackers. Regular security updates and patches should be deployed immediately upon availability from vendors, as the vulnerability represents a known weakness that can be exploited by threat actors. Network monitoring solutions should be configured to detect unusual patterns of traffic directed toward PAPI protocol endpoints, providing early warning of potential exploitation attempts. This vulnerability aligns with CWE-305 authentication weakness and represents a potential technique within the ATT&CK framework under the denial-of-service category, specifically targeting network infrastructure components to achieve operational disruption.