As of January 10, 2023, CISA will no longer be updating ICS security advisories for Siemens product vulnerabilities beyond the initial advisory. For the most up-to-date information on vulnerabilities in this advisory, see Siemens’ ProductCERT Security Advisories (CERT Services | Services | Siemens Global).

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1. EXECUTIVE SUMMARY

• CVSS v4 9.3
• ATTENTION: Exploitable remotely/low attack complexity
• Vendor: Siemens
• Equipment: RUGGEDCOM APE1808
• Vulnerabilities: Missing Authentication for Critical Function, NULL Pointer Dereference, Improper Limitation of a Pathname to a Restricted Directory (‘Path Traversal’), Improper Neutralization of Special Elements used in an OS Command (‘OS Command Injection’)

2. RISK EVALUATION

Successful exploitation of these vulnerabilities could allow an attacker to gain access to the management web interface or cause a denial-of-service condition.

3. TECHNICAL DETAILS

3.1 AFFECTED PRODUCTS

The following Siemens products are affected:

• RUGGEDCOM APE1808: all versions (CVE-2024-2550)
• RUGGEDCOM APE1808: all versions (CVE-2024-0012, CVE-2024-2552, CVE-2024-9474)

3.2 Vulnerability Overview

3.2.1 MISSING AUTHENTICATION FOR CRITICAL FUNCTION CWE-306

An authentication bypass in Palo Alto Networks PAN-OS software enables an unauthenticated attacker with network access to the management web interface to gain PAN-OS administrator privileges and perform administrative actions, tamper with the configuration, or exploit other authenticated privilege escalation vulnerabilities like CVE-2024-9474.

CVE-2024-0012 has been assigned to this vulnerability. A CVSS v3 base score of 10.0 has been calculated; the CVSS vector string is (CVSS:3.1/AV:N/AC:L/PR:N/UI:N/S:C/C:H/I:H/A:H).

A CVSS v4 score has also been calculated for CVE-2024-0012. A base score of 9.3 has been calculated; the CVSS vector string is (CVSS:4.0/AV:N/AC:L/AT:N/PR:N/UI:N/VC:H/VI:H/VA:H/SC:L/SI:N/SA:N).

3.2.2 NULL POINTER DEREFERENCE CWE-476

A null pointer dereference vulnerability in the GlobalProtect gateway in Palo Alto Networks PAN-OS software enables an unauthenticated attacker to stop the GlobalProtect service on the firewall by sending a specially crafted packet that causes a denial of service condition. Repeated attempts to trigger this condition result in the firewall entering maintenance mode.

CVE-2024-2550 has been assigned to this vulnerability. A CVSS v3 base score of 7.5 has been calculated; the CVSS vector string is (CVSS:3.1/AV:N/AC:L/PR:N/UI:N/S:U/C:N/I:N/A:H).

A CVSS v4 score has also been calculated for CVE-2024-2550. A base score of 8.7 has been calculated; the CVSS vector string is (CVSS:4.0/AV:N/AC:L/AT:N/PR:N/UI:N/VC:N/VI:N/VA:H/SC:N/SI:N/SA:N).

3.2.3 IMPROPER LIMITATION OF A PATHNAME TO A RESTRICTED DIRECTORY (‘PATH TRAVERSAL’) CWE-22

A command injection vulnerability in Palo Alto Networks PAN-OS software enables an authenticated administrator to bypass system restrictions in the management plane and delete files on the firewall.

CVE-2024-2552 has been assigned to this vulnerability. A CVSS v3 base score of 6.0 has been calculated; the CVSS vector string is (CVSS:3.1/AV:L/AC:L/PR:H/UI:N/S:U/C:N/I:H/A:H).

A CVSS v4 score has also been calculated for CVE-2024-2552. A base score of 6.8 has been calculated; the CVSS vector string is (CVSS:4.0/AV:L/AC:L/AT:N/PR:H/UI:N/VC:N/VI:H/VA:H/SC:N/SI:N/SA:N).

3.2.4 IMPROPER NEUTRALIZATION OF SPECIAL ELEMENTS USED IN AN OS COMMAND (‘OS COMMAND INJECTION’) CWE-78

A privilege escalation vulnerability in Palo Alto Networks PAN-OS software allows a PAN-OS administrator with access to the management web interface to perform actions on the firewall with root privileges.

CVE-2024-9474 has been assigned to this vulnerability. A CVSS v3 base score of 4.9 has been calculated; the CVSS vector string is (CVSS:3.1/AV:N/AC:L/PR:H/UI:N/S:U/C:N/I:H/A:N).

A CVSS v4 score has also been calculated for CVE-2024-9474. A base score of 6.9 has been calculated; the CVSS vector string is (CVSS:4.0/AV:N/AC:L/AT:N/PR:H/UI:N/VC:N/VI:H/VA:N/SC:N/SI:N/SA:N).

3.3 BACKGROUND

• CRITICAL INFRASTRUCTURE SECTORS: Energy
• COUNTRIES/AREAS DEPLOYED: Worldwide
• COMPANY HEADQUARTERS LOCATION: Germany

3.4 RESEARCHER

Siemens reported these vulnerabilities to CISA.

4. MITIGATIONS

Siemens has identified the following specific workarounds and mitigations users can apply to reduce risk:

• RUGGEDCOM APE1808: Contact customer support to receive patch and update information
• (CVE-2024-0012) RUGGEDCOM APE1808: Exposure can be reduced by limiting access to the management interface to trusted internal IP addresses as described in Palo Alto Networks’ Security Advisory
• (CVE-2024-9474) RUGGEDCOM APE1808: Exposure can be reduced by limiting access to the management interface to trusted internal IP addresses as described in Palo Alto Networks’ Security Advisory

As a general security measure, Siemens recommends protecting network access to devices with appropriate mechanisms. To operate the devices in a protected IT environment, Siemens recommends configuring the environment according to Siemens’ operational guidelines for industrial security and following recommendations in the product manuals.

Additional information on industrial security by Siemens can be found on the Siemens industrial security webpage

For more information see the associated Siemens security advisory SSA-354569 in HTML and CSAF.

CISA recommends users take defensive measures to minimize the risk of exploitation of these vulnerabilities. CISA reminds organizations to perform proper impact analysis and risk assessment prior to deploying defensive measures.

CISA also provides a section for control systems security recommended practices on the ICS webpage on cisa.gov. Several CISA products detailing cyber defense best practices are available for reading and download, including Improving Industrial Control Systems Cybersecurity with Defense-in-Depth Strategies.

CISA encourages organizations to implement recommended cybersecurity strategies for proactive defense of ICS assets.

Additional mitigation guidance and recommended practices are publicly available on the ICS webpage at cisa.gov in the technical information paper, ICS-TIP-12-146-01B–Targeted Cyber Intrusion Detection and Mitigation Strategies.

Organizations observing suspected malicious activity should follow established internal procedures and report findings to CISA for tracking and correlation against other incidents.

CISA also recommends users take the following measures to protect themselves from social engineering attacks:

• Do not click web links or open attachments in unsolicited email messages.
• Refer to Recognizing and Avoiding Email Scams for more information on avoiding email scams.
• Refer to Avoiding Social Engineering and Phishing Attacks for more information on social engineering attacks.

No known public exploitation specifically targeting these vulnerabilities has been reported to CISA at this time.

5. UPDATE HISTORY

• December 3, 2024: Initial Publication