CVE-2024-45461 in CloudStack
Summary
by MITRE • 10/16/2024
The CloudStack Quota feature allows cloud administrators to implement a quota or usage limit system for cloud resources, and is disabled by default. In environments where the feature is enabled, due to missing access check enforcements, non-administrative CloudStack user accounts are able to access and modify quota-related configurations and data. This issue affects Apache CloudStack from 4.7.0 through 4.18.2.3; and from 4.19.0.0 through 4.19.1.1, where the Quota feature is enabled.
Users are recommended to upgrade to Apache CloudStack 4.18.2.4 or 4.19.1.2, or later, which addresses this issue. Alternatively, users that do not use the Quota feature are advised to disabled the plugin by setting the global setting "quota.enable.service" to "false".
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Analysis
by VulDB Data Team • 02/12/2025
The vulnerability described in CVE-2024-45461 represents a critical access control flaw within the Apache CloudStack platform that undermines the security boundaries designed to protect administrative resources. This issue specifically targets the Quota feature which is intended to provide cloud administrators with mechanisms to monitor and control resource consumption across their cloud environments. The feature operates under the assumption that only privileged administrative accounts should have the ability to configure and manage quota policies, yet this security model has been compromised through inadequate access control enforcement mechanisms. The vulnerability affects a broad range of CloudStack versions including the 4.7.0 through 4.18.2.3 release line as well as versions 4.19.0.0 through 4.19.1.1, making it a widespread concern across multiple generations of the platform.
The technical implementation of this vulnerability stems from missing access control checks within the Quota feature's API endpoints and administrative interfaces. When the Quota feature is enabled, non-administrative user accounts gain unauthorized access to quota configuration interfaces and data manipulation capabilities that should be restricted to privileged administrators only. This represents a direct violation of the principle of least privilege and demonstrates a failure in the platform's authorization model. The flaw allows malicious or compromised user accounts to potentially manipulate resource limits, view sensitive quota data, and possibly disrupt resource allocation policies that are critical for cloud infrastructure management. This access control bypass affects the fundamental security architecture of CloudStack by permitting unauthorized modifications to system-wide resource management parameters that directly impact cloud economics and operational controls.
The operational impact of this vulnerability extends beyond simple privilege escalation, as it enables potential attackers to undermine cloud resource governance and financial controls. Cloud administrators rely on the Quota feature to prevent resource exhaustion, control costs, and maintain service level agreements with their customers. When unauthorized users can modify these quotas, they may disable protective limits, create artificial resource consumption patterns, or manipulate billing data that could lead to significant financial losses for cloud providers. The vulnerability also creates opportunities for denial of service attacks where malicious actors could set quotas to extreme values, effectively exhausting system resources or creating configuration conflicts. From an attacker's perspective, this vulnerability aligns with the MITRE ATT&CK framework's privilege escalation and defense evasion techniques, as it provides unauthorized access to administrative functions without requiring additional exploitation steps.
Organizations affected by this vulnerability should prioritize immediate remediation through upgrading to Apache CloudStack versions 4.18.2.4 or 4.19.1.2, which contain the necessary patches to address the missing access control enforcement. These patched versions implement proper authorization checks that ensure only authenticated administrative users can access quota configuration interfaces and modify system-wide resource limits. For environments where the Quota feature is not actively utilized, administrators can implement a temporary mitigation by disabling the service through the global setting quota.enable.service set to false, effectively removing the attack surface entirely. Security teams should also conduct comprehensive audits of their CloudStack environments to identify any unauthorized access patterns or suspicious activities that may have occurred during the vulnerability's window of exposure. The vulnerability maps to CWE-285 which specifically addresses improper authorization in software systems, and represents a clear failure in the platform's security architecture that requires immediate attention to prevent potential exploitation scenarios.