CVE-2012-3503: Katello Katello Uses Hard Coded Credential Vulnerability

CRITICAL
Advisory Identifier: GHSA-5xv2-q475-rwrh
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CVSS 9.8
CWE-798
Published
Advisory Summary

CVE-2012-3503 is a CRITICAL (CVSS 9.8) katello uses hard coded credential vulnerability (CWE-798: Use of Hard-coded Credentials) affecting Katello libraries in the RubyGems ecosystem. The issue involves katello uses hard coded credential. Remediation is available by upgrading affected packages to version 1.0.6, 1.1.7.

CVE-2012-3503 at a Glance

CVE Identifier CVE-2012-3503
GHSA Identifier GHSA-5xv2-q475-rwrh
Severity CRITICAL
CVSS v3.1 Base Score 9.8
CWE Classification CWE-798: Use of Hard-coded Credentials
Affected Product Katello
Package Ecosystem RubyGems
Published Date
Last Updated

Security Impact

CVSS: 9.8

The security impact metrics below are parsed directly from the CVSS v3.1 vector string (CVSS:3.1/AV:N/AC:L/PR:N/UI:N/S:U/C:H/I:H/A:H).

Attack Vector Network (AV:N)
Attack Complexity Low (AC:L)
Privileges Required None (PR:N)
User Interaction None (UI:N)
Scope Unchanged (S:U)
Confidentiality High (C:H)
Integrity High (I:H)
Availability High (A:H)

How to Fix CVE-2012-3503

To remediate this vulnerability, upgrade all affected Katello dependencies to a patched release. Both direct and transitive dependencies should be checked, as frameworks or security libraries may pull in vulnerable versions transitively.

katello fixed: 1.0.6 
Upgrade katello to 1.0.6
katello fixed: 1.1.7 
Upgrade katello to 1.1.7
Verify Direct and Transitive Dependencies

Run the following command in your project directory to verify that all resolved dependencies use the patched release: 

inspect dependencies for katello

How to Check if You Are Affected

To determine whether your application is affected by CVE-2012-3503, inspect your project dependencies for Katello:

inspect dependencies for katello

Analyze the terminal output to locate any version of Katello in your dependency tree. If any resolved version matches the vulnerable ranges listed in the table below (for example, versions earlier than 1.0.6), your application is affected.

Note: Verify declared build manifests and deployed runtime container environments.

Technical Details

Vulnerability Mechanism & Technical Analysis

This vulnerability is classified under CWE-798: Use of Hard-coded Credentials, where the product contains hard-coded credentials, such as a password or cryptographic key. In Katello, software state validation or input boundaries are circumvented during processing. Review the official source advisory statement below for specific affected components, classes, and reproduction details.

Source Advisory Statement

The installation script in Katello 1.0 and earlier does not properly generate the `Application.config.secret_token` value, which causes each default installation to have the same secret token, and allows remote attackers to authenticate to the CloudForms System Engine web interface as an arbitrary user by creating a cookie using the default `secret_token`.

CVE-2012-3503 Affected Katello Versions

2 component(s)
Fixed Versions:
1.0.61.1.7
Product / Package Ecosystem Affected Versions Fixed Version
katello
gem/katello
RubyGems
< 1.0.6
1.0.6
katello
gem/katello
RubyGems
≥ 1.1.0
< 1.1.7
1.1.7

References

NVD — CVE-2012-3503 NVD
https://nvd.nist.gov/vuln/detail/CVE-2012-3503
Katello Source Repository REPOSITORY
https://github.com/Katello/katello/pull/499
Security Fix Commit FIX COMMIT
https://github.com/Katello/katello/commit/7c256fef9d75029d0ffff58ff1dcda915056d3a3
Katello Source Repository REPOSITORY
https://github.com/Katello/katello
GitHub Advisory / Wiki ADVISORY
https://github.com/advisories/GHSA-5xv2-q475-rwrh
Katello Source Repository REPOSITORY
https://github.com/rubysec/ruby-advisory-db/blob/master/gems/katello/CVE-2012-3503.yml
web.archive.org/web/20140806122239/... WEB
https://web.archive.org/web/20140806122239/http://secunia.com/advisories/50344
Katello Security Information SECURITY
https://web.archive.org/web/20200229120740/http://www.securityfocus.com/bid/55140
rhn.redhat.com/errata/rhsa-2012-11... WEB
http://rhn.redhat.com/errata/RHSA-2012-1186.html
rhn.redhat.com/errata/rhsa-2012-11... WEB
http://rhn.redhat.com/errata/RHSA-2012-1187.html

Frequently Asked Questions

What is CVE-2012-3503?
CVE-2012-3503 is a security vulnerability in Katello involving Katello uses hard coded credential under CWE-798: Use of Hard-coded Credentials.
Which Katello versions are affected?
Affected versions include releases prior to 1.0.6, 1.1.7 across affected packages: katello.
What version fixes CVE-2012-3503?
Upgrading to 1.0.6, 1.1.7 (or the latest patched release for your respective branch) resolves the vulnerability.
Is katello affected?
Yes, katello is affected in releases prior to 1.0.6, 1.1.7. Upgrade your dependency to 1.0.6, 1.1.7 or later.
What is the CVSS score of CVE-2012-3503?
CVE-2012-3503 has a CVSS v3.1 base score of 9.8 (CRITICAL) with vector string CVSS:3.1/AV:N/AC:L/PR:N/UI:N/S:U/C:H/I:H/A:H.
What CWE is associated with CVE-2012-3503?
CVE-2012-3503 is classified under CWE-798: Use of Hard-coded Credentials (The product contains hard-coded credentials, such as a password or cryptographic key.).
How can I check RubyGems dependencies for CVE-2012-3503?
Run the dependency tree command: 'inspect dependencies for katello'. This command lists direct and transitive dependencies in your build configuration so you can verify if a vulnerable version is resolved.
Machine-readable OSV JSON OSV v1.5 Schema
Normalized schema output
View Raw JSON 
{
  "schema_version" : "1.4.0",
  "id" : "GHSA-5xv2-q475-rwrh",
  "modified" : "2024-04-11T15:43:37Z",
  "published" : "2022-05-17T05:13:13Z",
  "aliases" : [ "CVE-2012-3503" ],
  "summary" : "Katello uses hard coded credential",
  "details" : "The installation script in Katello 1.0 and earlier does not properly generate the `Application.config.secret_token` value, which causes each default installation to have the same secret token, and allows remote attackers to authenticate to the CloudForms System Engine web interface as an arbitrary user by creating a cookie using the default `secret_token`.",
  "severity" : [ {
    "type" : "CVSS_V3",
    "score" : "CVSS:3.1/AV:N/AC:L/PR:N/UI:N/S:U/C:H/I:H/A:H"
  } ],
  "affected" : [ {
    "package" : {
      "ecosystem" : "RubyGems",
      "name" : "katello"
    },
    "ranges" : [ {
      "type" : "ECOSYSTEM",
      "events" : [ {
        "introduced" : "0"
      }, {
        "fixed" : "1.0.6"
      } ]
    } ]
  }, {
    "package" : {
      "ecosystem" : "RubyGems",
      "name" : "katello"
    },
    "ranges" : [ {
      "type" : "ECOSYSTEM",
      "events" : [ {
        "introduced" : "1.1.0"
      }, {
        "fixed" : "1.1.7"
      } ]
    } ]
  } ],
  "references" : [ {
    "type" : "ADVISORY",
    "url" : "https://nvd.nist.gov/vuln/detail/CVE-2012-3503"
  }, {
    "type" : "WEB",
    "url" : "https://github.com/Katello/katello/pull/499"
  }, {
    "type" : "WEB",
    "url" : "https://github.com/Katello/katello/commit/7c256fef9d75029d0ffff58ff1dcda915056d3a3"
  }, {
    "type" : "PACKAGE",
    "url" : "https://github.com/Katello/katello"
  }, {
    "type" : "ADVISORY",
    "url" : "https://github.com/advisories/GHSA-5xv2-q475-rwrh"
  }, {
    "type" : "WEB",
    "url" : "https://github.com/rubysec/ruby-advisory-db/blob/master/gems/katello/CVE-2012-3503.yml"
  }, {
    "type" : "WEB",
    "url" : "https://web.archive.org/web/20140806122239/http://secunia.com/advisories/50344"
  }, {
    "type" : "WEB",
    "url" : "https://web.archive.org/web/20200229120740/http://www.securityfocus.com/bid/55140"
  }, {
    "type" : "WEB",
    "url" : "http://rhn.redhat.com/errata/RHSA-2012-1186.html"
  }, {
    "type" : "WEB",
    "url" : "http://rhn.redhat.com/errata/RHSA-2012-1187.html"
  } ],
  "database_specific" : {
    "cwe_ids" : [ "CWE-798" ],
    "severity" : "CRITICAL",
    "github_reviewed" : true,
    "github_reviewed_at" : "2024-04-09T14:24:53Z",
    "nvd_published_at" : "2012-08-25T10:29:00Z"
  }
}