UaGateway: Use After Free
CVE-2023-32174 is a critical-severity use after free vulnerability in UaGateway from Unified Automation, with a CVSS 3.0 base score of 9.1 out of 10. It can be exploited remotely over the network by an attacker with administrator privileges, without any action from a user. The record lists version 1.5.14.495 as the first without the flaw, so updating UaGateway to that release or later removes the exposure. There is no confirmed exploitation so far. EPSS estimates a 1.85% chance of exploitation within 30 days, higher than 79% of scored CVEs.
Critical severity: a successful attack would have severe impact.
What to do
- Update UaGateway to 1.5.14.495 or a later version.
Affected products and versions
| Vendor | Product | Affected versions | Fixed in |
|---|---|---|---|
| Unified Automation | UaGateway | UaGateway 1.5.13; before 1.5.14.495 | 1.5.14.495 |
Version data comes from the organisation that assigned the CVE. Confirm against the vendor advisory before deciding you are unaffected.
How the severity score breaks down
- Attack vector
- NetworkCan be exploited remotely over a network, including the internet.
- Attack complexity
- LowNo special conditions are needed; the attack works reliably.
- Privileges required
- HighAdministrator-level access is required first.
- User interaction
- NoneNo action by a victim is required.
- Scope
- ChangedThe attack can reach beyond the vulnerable component into other systems.
- Confidentiality
- HighAll data handled by the component can be read.
- Integrity
- HighData or code can be modified at will.
- Availability
- HighThe component can be taken down completely.
Vector: CVSS:3.0/AV:N/AC:L/PR:H/UI:N/S:C/C:H/I:H/A:H. Scored by CNA (trendmicro.com).
Official description
Unified Automation UaGateway NodeManagerOpcUa Use-After-Free Remote Code Execution Vulnerability. This vulnerability allows remote attackers to execute arbitrary code on affected installations of Unified Automation UaGateway. Authentication is required to exploit this vulnerability when the product is in its default configuration. The specific flaw exists within the handling of NodeManagerOpcUa objects. The issue results from the lack of validating the existence of an object prior to performing operations on the object. An attacker can leverage this vulnerability to execute code in the context of SYSTEM. . Was ZDI-CAN-20577.
Source: the CVE record as published by its numbering authority, via NVD and CVE.org.
The underlying weakness: Use After Free
The product reuses or references memory after it has been freed. At some point afterward, the memory may be allocated again and saved in another pointer, while the original pointer references a location somewhere within the new allocation. Any operations using the original pointer are no longer valid because the memory belongs to the code that operates on the new pointer.
How developers prevent this class of flaw
- Choose a language that provides automatic memory management.
- When freeing pointers, be sure to set them to NULL once they are freed. However, the utilization of multiple or complex data structures may lower the usefulness of this strategy.
Timeline
- CVE record published.
- CISA published its SSVC assessment (exploitation: none, automatable: no, technical impact: total).
- Record last changed materially (score, affected products, status or references).
References
Patches and release notes
Third-party and government advisories
- zerodayinitiative.com/advisories/ZDI-23-780/Third Party Advisory
Other vulnerabilities in UaGateway
- 7.5 High severity
Recent Use After Free vulnerabilities
- 7.8 High severity
- 9.8 Critical severity
- 7.8 High severity
- 7.8 High severity
- 7.8 High severity
- 7.4 High severity
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