CVE-2021-42743 : Security Advisory and Response

An overview of a local privilege escalation vulnerability in Splunk Enterprise versions prior to 8.1.1 on Windows.

Understanding CVE-2021-42743

A detailed look into a misconfiguration leading to an exploitable local privilege escalation vulnerability.

What is CVE-2021-42743?

CVE-2021-42743 is a vulnerability in Splunk Enterprise versions before 8.1.1 on Windows that allows a lower privileged user to escalate their privileges to the Splunk user through a misconfiguration in the node default path.

The Impact of CVE-2021-42743

This vulnerability has a high impact, with a CVSS base score of 8.8. It can lead to unauthorized local privilege escalation, potentially compromising confidentiality, integrity, and availability.

Technical Details of CVE-2021-42743

Exploring the technical aspects of the vulnerability.

Vulnerability Description

The misconfiguration in the node default path enables a lower privileged user to elevate their privileges to the Splunk user on affected systems.

Affected Systems and Versions

Product: Splunk Enterprise
Vendor: Splunk
Versions Affected: 8.1 version(s) before 8.1.1

Exploitation Mechanism

The vulnerability can be exploited locally, requiring low privileges and no user interaction, resulting in a changed scope with high impact on availability, confidentiality, and integrity.

Mitigation and Prevention

Best practices and steps to mitigate the vulnerability.

Immediate Steps to Take

Update Splunk Enterprise to version 8.1.1 or newer to patch the vulnerability.
Implement the principle of least privilege to restrict user access rights.

Long-Term Security Practices

Regularly audit and review user permissions and configurations.
Monitor and log privilege escalations for early detection of unauthorized access.

Patching and Updates

Stay informed about security updates from Splunk and promptly apply patches to secure the system.