CISA Advisory: Siemens RUGGEDCOM APE1808 | CISA

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, please see Siemens’ ProductCERT Security Advisories (CERT Services | Services | Siemens Global). 

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1. EXECUTIVE SUMMARY

• CVSS v3 6.0
• ATTENTION: Exploitable remotely
• Vendor: Siemens
• Equipment: RUGGEDCOM APE1808
• Vulnerability: Incorrect Authorization

2. RISK EVALUATION

Successful exploitation of this vulnerability could allow an attacker to cause a limited denial-of-service condition, data loss, or information disclosure.

3. TECHNICAL DETAILS

3.1 AFFECTED PRODUCTS

The following Siemens products with Nozomi Guardian / CMC before 24.3.1 are affected:

• RUGGEDCOM APE1808LNX (6GK6015-0AL20-0GH0): All versions
• RUGGEDCOM APE1808LNX CC (6GK6015-0AL20-0GH1): All versions

3.2 Vulnerability Overview

3.2.1 INCORRECT AUTHORIZATION CWE-863

An access control vulnerability was discovered in the Reports section due to a specific access restriction not being properly enforced for users with limited privileges. If a logged-in user with reporting privileges learns how to create a specific application request, they might be able to make limited changes to the reporting configuration. This could result in a partial loss of data integrity. In Guardian/CMC instances with a reporting configuration, there could be limited denial-of-service (DoS) impacts, as the reports may not reach their intended destination, and there could also be limited information disclosure impacts. Furthermore, modifying the destination SMTP server for the reports could lead to the compromise of external credentials, as they might be sent to an unauthorized server. This could expand the scope of the attack.

CVE-2024-4465 has been assigned to this vulnerability. A CVSS v3 base score of 6.0 has been assigned; the CVSS vector string is (CVSS:3.1/AV:N/AC:H/PR:L/UI:N/S:C/C:L/I:L/A:L).

3.3 BACKGROUND

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

3.4 RESEARCHER

Siemens reported this vulnerability to CISA.

4. MITIGATIONS

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

• Upgrade Nozomi Guardian / CMC to V24.3.1. Contact customer support to receive patch and update information.
• Restrict access to the affected components to trusted personnel.

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-254396 in HTML and CSAF.

Nozomi provides a public RSS feed for their security alerts to which
users can subscribe.

CISA recommends users take defensive measures to minimize the risk of exploitation of this vulnerability, such as:

• Minimize network exposure for all control system devices and/or systems, ensuring they are not accessible from the internet.
• Locate control system networks and remote devices behind firewalls and isolating them from business networks.
• When remote access is required, use more secure methods, such as Virtual Private Networks (VPNs). Recognize VPNs may have vulnerabilities, should be updated to the most recent version available, and are only as secure as the connected devices.

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.

No known public exploitation specifically targeting this vulnerability has been reported to CISA at this time. This vulnerability has a high attack complexity.

5. UPDATE HISTORY

• October 10, 2024: Initial Publication