CVE-2021-22966 Explained : Impact and Mitigation

Privilege escalation from Editor to Admin using Groups in Concrete CMS versions 8.5.6 and below. Learn about the impact, technical details, mitigation, and prevention measures.

Understanding CVE-2021-22966

This CVE involves a privilege escalation vulnerability in Concrete CMS versions 8.5.6 and below, allowing users to elevate their permissions from Editor to Admin using specially crafted requests.

What is CVE-2021-22966?

The vulnerability in Concrete CMS versions 8.5.6 and below enables users in certain groups to escalate their privileges to Admin by exploiting permissions on the bulkupdate page.

The Impact of CVE-2021-22966

With a CVSS score of 7.1, this privilege escalation vulnerability poses a significant risk as attackers can gain unauthorized administrative access to the system, potentially leading to data compromise and system manipulation.

Technical Details of CVE-2021-22966

Understand the specifics of the vulnerability.

Vulnerability Description

The issue arises from a lack of proper checks on group permissions, allowing users to manipulate requests and gain escalated privileges.

Affected Systems and Versions

Concrete CMS versions 8.5.6 and below are affected, while the vulnerability has been patched in version 9 and 8.5.7.

Exploitation Mechanism

By leveraging view permissions on the bulkupdate page, users in specific groups can exploit this vulnerability to become administrators.

Mitigation and Prevention

Discover how to address and prevent this security issue.

Immediate Steps to Take

Users are advised to update their Concrete CMS installations to version 9 or 8.5.7 to mitigate the vulnerability.

Long-Term Security Practices

Implement strict permissions management and regularly review group privileges to prevent unauthorized escalations.

Patching and Updates

Stay informed about security patches and updates released by Concrete CMS to ensure ongoing protection against vulnerabilities.