CVE-2020-1734 : Exploit Details and Defense Strategies
Learn about CVE-2020-1734, a high severity vulnerability in Ansible allowing arbitrary command execution. Find out how to mitigate this security risk.
A flaw in the pipe lookup plugin of Ansible allows for arbitrary command execution when certain conditions are met. This CVE has a CVSS base score of 7.4, indicating a high severity issue.
Understanding CVE-2020-1734
This CVE relates to a vulnerability found in Ansible that can result in the execution of arbitrary commands under specific circumstances.
What is CVE-2020-1734?
The vulnerability in the pipe lookup plugin of Ansible permits attackers to run arbitrary commands by manipulating ansible facts without proper escaping.
The Impact of CVE-2020-1734
The vulnerability poses a high-risk threat, potentially allowing attackers to execute arbitrary commands on affected systems by leveraging the Ansible pipe lookup plugin.
Technical Details of CVE-2020-1734
This section delves into the specifics of the CVE, including affected systems, and the exploitation mechanism.
Vulnerability Description
The flaw in the pipe lookup plugin of Ansible enables the execution of arbitrary commands when particular conditions are met, such as overwriting ansible facts without proper quote plugin escaping.
Affected Systems and Versions
- Product: Ansible
- Vendor: Red Hat
- Affected Version: Not applicable
Exploitation Mechanism
The vulnerability is exploited by utilizing subprocess.Popen() with shell=True, allowing attackers to manipulate ansible facts and execute arbitrary commands on the target system.
Mitigation and Prevention
To address CVE-2020-1734, immediate actions and long-term security measures are necessary.
Immediate Steps to Take
- Apply security patches provided by Ansible and Red Hat.
- Implement strict input validation to prevent command injections.
Long-Term Security Practices
- Regularly update Ansible to the latest versions to ensure the latest security fixes.
- Enhance security awareness and training to recognize and mitigate similar vulnerabilities.
Patching and Updates
Ensure that the affected systems are patched with the latest updates from Ansible and Red Hat to mitigate the risk of exploitation.