CVE-2018-14661 Vulnerability Analysis & Exploit Details

CVE-2018-14661
Vulnerability Scoring

6.5
/10
High Risk

If left unpatched, CVE-2018-14661 could lead to major system disruptions or data loss.

Attack Complexity Details

  • Attack Complexity: Low
    Exploits can be performed without significant complexity or special conditions.
  • Attack Vector: Network
    Vulnerability is exploitable over a network without physical access.
  • Privileges Required: Low
    Some privileges are necessary to exploit the vulnerability.
  • Scope: Unchanged
    Exploit remains within the originally vulnerable component.
  • User Interaction: None
    No user interaction is necessary for exploitation.

CVE-2018-14661 Details

Status: Modified

Last updated: 🕞 21 Nov 2024, 03:49 UTC
Originally published on: 🕗 31 Oct 2018, 20:29 UTC

Time between publication and last update: 2212 days

CVSS Release: version 3

CVSS3 Source

nvd@nist.gov

CVSS3 Type

Primary

CVSS3 Vector

CVSS:3.1/AV:N/AC:L/PR:L/UI:N/S:U/C:N/I:N/A:H

CVE-2018-14661 Vulnerability Summary

CVE-2018-14661: It was found that usage of snprintf function in feature/locks translator of glusterfs server 3.8.4, as shipped with Red Hat Gluster Storage, was vulnerable to a format string attack. A remote, authenticated attacker could use this flaw to cause remote denial of service.

Assessing the Risk of CVE-2018-14661

Access Complexity Graph

The exploitability of CVE-2018-14661 depends on two key factors: attack complexity (the level of effort required to execute an exploit) and privileges required (the access level an attacker needs).

Exploitability Analysis for CVE-2018-14661

CVE-2018-14661 presents an accessible attack vector with minimal effort required. Restricting access controls and implementing security updates are critical to reducing exploitation risks.

Understanding AC and PR

A lower complexity and fewer privilege requirements make exploitation easier. Security teams should evaluate these aspects to determine the urgency of mitigation strategies, such as patch management and access control policies.

Attack Complexity (AC) measures the difficulty in executing an exploit. A high AC means that specific conditions must be met, making an attack more challenging, while a low AC means the vulnerability can be exploited with minimal effort.

Privileges Required (PR) determine the level of system access necessary for an attack. Vulnerabilities requiring no privileges are more accessible to attackers, whereas high privilege requirements limit exploitation to authorized users with elevated access.

CVSS Score Breakdown Chart

Above is the CVSS Sub-score Breakdown for CVE-2018-14661, illustrating how Base, Impact, and Exploitability factors combine to form the overall severity rating. A higher sub-score typically indicates a more severe or easier-to-exploit vulnerability.

CIA Impact Analysis

Below is the Impact Analysis for CVE-2018-14661, showing how Confidentiality, Integrity, and Availability might be affected if the vulnerability is exploited. Higher values usually signal greater potential damage.

  • Confidentiality: None
    CVE-2018-14661 has no significant impact on data confidentiality.
  • Integrity: None
    CVE-2018-14661 poses no threat to data integrity.
  • Availability: High
    CVE-2018-14661 can disrupt system operations, potentially causing complete denial of service (DoS).

Exploit Prediction Scoring System (EPSS)

The EPSS score estimates the probability that this vulnerability will be exploited in the near future.

EPSS Score: 0.291% (probability of exploit)

EPSS Percentile: 69.33% (lower percentile = lower relative risk)
This vulnerability is less risky than approximately 30.67% of others.

CVE-2018-14661 References

External References

CWE Common Weakness Enumeration

CWE-134

CAPEC Common Attack Pattern Enumeration and Classification

  • Format String Injection CAPEC-135 An adversary includes formatting characters in a string input field on the target application. Most applications assume that users will provide static text and may respond unpredictably to the presence of formatting character. For example, in certain functions of the C programming languages such as printf, the formatting character %s will print the contents of a memory location expecting this location to identify a string and the formatting character %n prints the number of DWORD written in the memory. An adversary can use this to read or write to memory locations or files, or simply to manipulate the value of the resulting text in unexpected ways. Reading or writing memory may result in program crashes and writing memory could result in the execution of arbitrary code if the adversary can write to the program stack.
  • String Format Overflow in syslog() CAPEC-67 This attack targets applications and software that uses the syslog() function insecurely. If an application does not explicitely use a format string parameter in a call to syslog(), user input can be placed in the format string parameter leading to a format string injection attack. Adversaries can then inject malicious format string commands into the function call leading to a buffer overflow. There are many reported software vulnerabilities with the root cause being a misuse of the syslog() function.

Vulnerable Configurations

  • cpe:2.3:a:gluster:glusterfs:3.8.4:*:*:*:*:*:*:*
    cpe:2.3:a:gluster:glusterfs:3.8.4:*:*:*:*:*:*:*
  • cpe:2.3:o:debian:debian_linux:8.0:*:*:*:*:*:*:*
    cpe:2.3:o:debian:debian_linux:8.0:*:*:*:*:*:*:*
  • cpe:2.3:o:debian:debian_linux:9.0:*:*:*:*:*:*:*
    cpe:2.3:o:debian:debian_linux:9.0:*:*:*:*:*:*:*
  • cpe:2.3:a:redhat:virtualization:4.0:*:*:*:*:*:*:*
    cpe:2.3:a:redhat:virtualization:4.0:*:*:*:*:*:*:*
  • cpe:2.3:a:redhat:virtualization_host:4.0:*:*:*:*:*:*:*
    cpe:2.3:a:redhat:virtualization_host:4.0:*:*:*:*:*:*:*
  • cpe:2.3:o:redhat:enterprise_linux:7.0:*:*:*:*:*:*:*
    cpe:2.3:o:redhat:enterprise_linux:7.0:*:*:*:*:*:*:*
  • cpe:2.3:o:redhat:enterprise_linux_server:6.0:*:*:*:*:*:*:*
    cpe:2.3:o:redhat:enterprise_linux_server:6.0:*:*:*:*:*:*:*
  • cpe:2.3:o:redhat:enterprise_linux_server:7.0:*:*:*:*:*:*:*
    cpe:2.3:o:redhat:enterprise_linux_server:7.0:*:*:*:*:*:*:*

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