Adobe ColdFusion, a popular web application development platform, has recently been found to be susceptible to an Improper Access Control vulnerability, which affects versions 2018 Update 15 (and earlier) as well as 2021 Update 5 (and earlier). Exploiting this vulnerability could lead to arbitrary code execution in the context of the current user, without requiring user interaction. As such, it's crucial for developers and system administrators to be informed and take necessary steps to remediate the vulnerability.

Vulnerability Details

The specific vulnerability is caused due to inadequate access control mechanisms within Adobe ColdFusion that may inadvertently allow unauthorized users to access sensitive information, modify settings or configurations, and execute arbitrary code within the application.

This issue has been assigned a common vulnerabilities and exposures (CVE) identifier: CVE-2023-26360.

Impact

Successful exploitation of this vulnerability could provide an attacker with the ability to execute arbitrary code under the context of the current user. This might lead to various adverse consequences, such as unauthorized access to sensitive data or network resources and potential compromise of the underlying system.

Exploit Example

To take advantage of this vulnerability, an attacker may send a specially crafted request to the vulnerable ColdFusion server. The request may contain malicious code that is then executed by the server. A simplified example of such a request is shown below:

GET /example/vulnerable_page.cfm?malicious_parameter=<% arbitrary_code %>

where arbitrary_code represents the code to be executed on the target system.

Mitigation

Adobe has released updates to address the vulnerability in ColdFusion 2018 Update 16 and ColdFusion 2021 Update 6, which can be found at the following link:

- Adobe ColdFusion Update Download

It is highly recommended to apply these updates as soon as possible to protect your systems from potential exploitation.

Original References

- Adobe Security Bulletin
- CVE Official Page

Conclusion

In this era of growing cybersecurity threats, understanding and mitigating vulnerabilities like CVE-2023-26360 is crucial for any organization that uses the affected Adobe ColdFusion platforms. By updating to the latest secure version and following best security practices, you can help protect your applications and infrastructure from potential exploitation.

Timeline

Published on: 03/23/2023 20:15:00 UTC
Last modified on: 03/28/2023 13:01:00 UTC