CVE-2026-24166 in Unified Fabric Manager
Summary
by MITRE • 08/25/2026
NVIDIA UFM Enterprise contains a vulnerability in the session management component, where an attacker could use a hard-coded cryptographic key to extract information. A successful exploit of this vulnerability might lead to information disclosure and escalation of privileges.
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Analysis
by VulDB Data Team • 08/25/2026
The identified security flaw resides within the session management subsystem of NVIDIA Unified Fabric Manager (UFM) Enterprise software. This critical component is responsible for authenticating users, maintaining active sessions, and managing access control policies that govern interactions with the network infrastructure monitoring platform. The vulnerability stems from a fundamental implementation error where cryptographic keys used to secure or validate these sessions are hardcoded directly into the application binary rather than being dynamically generated, securely stored in a hardware security module, or derived through a robust key derivation function during deployment. This design decision violates core principles of secure software development and cryptography best practices, as it removes the element of secrecy required for effective encryption and authentication mechanisms.
From a technical perspective, the presence of hard-coded cryptographic keys allows any actor with access to the compiled binary or application artifacts to reverse-engineer the key material. Once an attacker obtains this static key, they can forge valid session tokens or decrypt sensitive data transmitted during authenticated sessions without possessing legitimate credentials. This effectively bypasses the intended authentication controls, allowing unauthorized entities to impersonate existing users or create new administrative sessions at will. The flaw is particularly severe because it undermines the integrity of the entire access control framework, as the security posture relies entirely on the obscurity of these keys rather than their secrecy through proper key management practices.
The operational impact of exploiting this vulnerability is significant and multifaceted. Initially, an attacker can achieve information disclosure by accessing sensitive configuration data, network topology maps, performance metrics, or user logs that are protected only by session authentication. More critically, the ability to forge sessions enables privilege escalation. An adversary could elevate their access level from a standard monitoring view to full administrative control over the UFM Enterprise instance. This grants the attacker comprehensive visibility into and potential manipulation of the underlying data center fabric, including the ability to alter routing policies, disable security features, or exfiltrate proprietary network configurations. Such compromise can lead to widespread service disruption, lateral movement within the enterprise network, and long-term persistence if not detected promptly.
This vulnerability aligns with Common Weakness Enumeration (CWE) identifiers such as CWE-798: Use of Hard-coded Credentials and CWE-321: Use of a Key Past its Expiration Date or in an Incorrect Context, depending on the specific implementation details regarding key lifecycle management. In terms of offensive security frameworks, this flaw facilitates techniques categorized under MITRE ATT&CK ID T1078: Valid Accounts, specifically through credential spoofing and session hijacking mechanisms. Attackers can leverage these capabilities to establish unauthorized access without triggering typical brute-force or password-spraying alerts associated with traditional authentication failures.
Mitigation strategies must address both the immediate technical flaw and broader key management practices. NVIDIA has likely released patches that replace hard-coded keys with dynamically generated, unique per-deployment cryptographic material. Organizations running affected versions of UFM Enterprise should apply these updates immediately to restore secure session handling. In addition to patching, administrators should implement strict network segmentation to limit access to the UFM management interface and enforce multi-factor authentication where supported to add a layer of defense-in-depth. Regular audits of application binaries for embedded secrets using static analysis tools can also help prevent similar vulnerabilities in future deployments. Furthermore, adopting industry-standard key management solutions ensures that cryptographic keys are rotated regularly and stored securely, eliminating reliance on hard-coded values that compromise long-term security integrity.