Red Hat Enterprise Linux 7: Incorrect Authorization
CVE-2023-3899 is a high-severity incorrect authorization vulnerability in Red Hat Enterprise Linux 7 from Red Hat, with a CVSS 3.1 base score of 7.8 out of 10. It can be exploited with local access to the system by an attacker with a low-privileged account, without any action from a user. There is no confirmed exploitation so far. EPSS estimates a 0.24% chance of exploitation within 30 days, which is low compared with other CVEs.
High severity with no evidence of exploitation so far.
What to do
- Update Subscription-manager to 1.28.39 or 1.29.37, whichever matches your release line, or a later version.
- Read the advisory on access.redhat.com for workarounds and exact fixed builds.
Affected products and versions
Version data comes from the organisation that assigned the CVE; 8 further products are omitted here. Confirm against the vendor advisory before deciding you are unaffected.
How the severity score breaks down
- Attack vector
- LocalThe attacker needs local access or must trick a user into running something.
- Attack complexity
- LowNo special conditions are needed; the attack works reliably.
- Privileges required
- LowA basic user account is enough.
- User interaction
- NoneNo action by a victim is required.
- Scope
- UnchangedImpact stays within the vulnerable component.
- 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:3.1/AV:L/AC:L/PR:L/UI:N/S:U/C:H/I:H/A:H. Scored by NVD.
| Scoring system | Score | Severity | Scored by |
|---|---|---|---|
| CVSS 3.1 | 7.8 | High | CNA (redhat.com) |
| CVSS 3.1 | 7.8 | High | NVD |
Official description
A vulnerability was found in subscription-manager that allows local privilege escalation due to inadequate authorization. The D-Bus interface com.redhat.RHSM1 exposes a significant number of methods to all users that could change the state of the registration. By using the com.redhat.RHSM1.Config.SetAll() method, a low-privileged local user could tamper with the state of the registration, by unregistering the system or by changing the current entitlements. This flaw allows an attacker to set arbitrary configuration directives for /etc/rhsm/rhsm.conf, which can be abused to cause a local privilege escalation to an unconfined root.
Source: the CVE record as published by its numbering authority, via NVD and CVE.org.
The underlying weakness: Incorrect Authorization
The product performs an authorization check when an actor attempts to access a resource or perform an action, but it does not correctly perform the check.
How developers prevent this class of flaw
- Divide the product into anonymous, normal, privileged, and administrative areas. Reduce the attack surface by carefully mapping roles with data and functionality. Use role-based access control (RBAC) to enforce the roles at the appropriate boundaries. Note that this approach may not protect against horizontal authorization, i.e., it will not protect a user from attacking others with the same role.
- Ensure that access control checks are performed related to the business logic. These checks may be different than the access control checks that are applied to more generic resources such as files, connections, processes, memory, and database records. For example, a database may restrict access for medical records to a specific database user, but each record might only be intended to be accessible to the patient and the patient's doctor.
- Use a vetted library or framework that does not allow this weakness to occur or provides constructs that make this weakness easier to avoid. For example, consider using authorization frameworks such as the JAAS Authorization Framework and the OWASP ESAPI Access Control feature.
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
Advisories
- access.redhat.com/errata/RHSA-2023:4701
- access.redhat.com/errata/RHSA-2023:4702
- access.redhat.com/errata/RHSA-2023:4703
- access.redhat.com/errata/RHSA-2023:4704
- access.redhat.com/errata/RHSA-2023:4705
- access.redhat.com/errata/RHSA-2023:4706
- access.redhat.com/errata/RHSA-2023:4707
- access.redhat.com/errata/RHSA-2023:4708
- access.redhat.com/security/cve/CVE-2023-3899
- bugzilla.redhat.com/show_bug.cgi?id=2225407Issue Tracking
Other references
Other vulnerabilities in Red Hat Enterprise Linux 7
- 7.8 High severity
- 7.5 High severity
- 7.5 High severity
- 7.9 High severity
- 7.3 High severity
- 7.5 High severity
Recent Incorrect Authorization vulnerabilities
- 9.8 Critical severity
Ivanti Sentry Authentication Bypass Exploited
- 8.0 High severity
- 9.8 Critical severity
- 7.5 High severity
- 9.1 Critical severity
- 8.8 High severity
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