CVE-2020-24676 Explained : Impact and Mitigation

Symphony Plus Operations and Symphony Plus Historian by ABB are affected by insecure Windows services, potentially leading to privilege escalation attacks.

Understanding CVE-2020-24676

What is CVE-2020-24676?

In Symphony Plus Operations and Symphony Plus Historian, certain services are susceptible to privilege escalation attacks, allowing authenticated users to execute arbitrary code and potentially escalate privileges.

The Impact of CVE-2020-24676

The vulnerability has a CVSS base score of 7.8, indicating a high severity level with significant impacts on confidentiality, integrity, and availability of the affected systems.

Technical Details of CVE-2020-24676

Vulnerability Description

The vulnerability stems from improper handling of privileges, enabling unprivileged users to execute malicious code and potentially escalate their privileges.

Affected Systems and Versions

ABB Ability™ Symphony® Plus Operations versions less than 3.3 Service Pack 1, 2.1 SP2 Rollup 2, and 2.2
ABB Ability™ Symphony® Plus Historian version less than 3.2

Exploitation Mechanism

The vulnerability allows an authenticated user to exploit insecure Windows services, executing arbitrary code and potentially escalating privileges based on the service's user context.

Mitigation and Prevention

Immediate Steps to Take

Apply vendor-supplied patches promptly to mitigate the vulnerability
Restrict network access to vulnerable systems
Monitor for any unauthorized access or unusual activities

Long-Term Security Practices

Regularly update and patch software to address security vulnerabilities
Implement the principle of least privilege to restrict user access rights

Patching and Updates

ABB has released patches to address the vulnerability in affected versions of Symphony Plus Operations and Historian