#VU55909 Security features bypass in Vault and Vault Enterprise - CVE-2021-38553

Vulnerability identifier: #VU55909

Vulnerability risk: High

CVSSv4.0: 8 [CVSS:4.0/AV:N/AC:L/AT:N/PR:N/UI:N/VC:H/VI:H/VA:N/SC:N/SI:N/SA:N/E:U/U:Amber]

CVE-ID: CVE-2021-38553

CWE-ID: CWE-254

Exploitation vector: Network

Exploit availability: No

Vulnerable software:
Vault
Web applications / Modules and components for CMS
Vault Enterprise
Web applications / Modules and components for CMS

Vendor: HashiCorp

Description

The vulnerability allows a remote attacker to compromise the target system.

The vulnerability exists due to an excessively broad filesystem permissions flaw when initialized an underlying database file associated with the Integrated Storage feature. A remote attacker can bypass security features to launch further attacks on the system. 

Mitigation
Install updates from vendor's website.

Vulnerable software versions

Vault: 1.4.0 - 1.4.7, 1.5.0 - 1.5.9, 1.6.0 - 1.6.5, 1.7.0 - 1.7.3

Vault Enterprise: 1.4.0 - 1.4.7, 1.5.0 - 1.5.9, 1.6.0 - 1.6.5, 1.7.0 - 1.7.3

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External links
https://discuss.hashicorp.com/t/hcsec-2021-20-vault-s-integrated-storage-backend-database-file-may-have-excessively-broad-permissions/28168

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Q & A

Can this vulnerability be exploited remotely?

Yes. This vulnerability can be exploited by a remote non-authenticated attacker via the Internet.

Is there known malware, which exploits this vulnerability?

No. We are not aware of malware exploiting this vulnerability.