External risk intelligence

Unraid Authentication Bypass Leading to Unauthorized Access

CVE advisoryKnown Exploit

CVE-2020-5849

A vulnerability in Unraid allows bypassing authentication, potentially granting attackers unauthorized access and control of the system. This could expose sensitive data or lead to further system compromise. The risk to affected organizations is significant due to the potential for unauthorized access and system manipu

3Halo Surface Signal

Authentication Bypass

Unraid

6.8.0

External exposure likelihood

Halo Surface Signal score for CVE-2020-5849

Unraid is a network-attached storage and server operating system with a web-based administrative interface. While typically intended for internal home or small business network management, these interfaces are sometimes misconfigured or intentionally exposed to the public internet by users, making remote reachability possible but not the intended default deployment pattern.

Horizon Alert

Summary of the vulnerability and why it matters

This vulnerability affects Unraid. The flaw allows an attacker to bypass authentication controls. This could lead to unauthorized access to the system.

  • Vulnerable component: Unraid
  • Core weakness: Authentication bypass
  • Main business impact: Unauthorized system access

Attack Path

How an attacker could exploit the issue

An unauthenticated attacker could bypass authentication controls to gain unauthorized access to the administrative interface of Unraid. This could allow an attacker to execute commands with elevated privileges on the affected system, potentially leading to further compromise. The vulnerability can be chained with another to achieve remote code execution.

  • External network exposure
  • Attacker bypasses authentication
  • Trigger command execution

Live Threat

Current exploitation, exposure, and threat context

This vulnerability allows unauthorized access to the Unraid administrative interface, potentially leading to the compromise of sensitive data and system control. The ease of exploitation combined with the critical nature of the affected system poses a significant risk to organizations utilizing this software. Organizations should consider immediate action to mitigate this threat.

  • Likely attacker skill level: Low.
  • Required access or conditions: Network access.
  • Business risk or urgency: High.

Priority actions

Operational Fix

Recommended remediation, mitigation, and detection steps

This vulnerability in Unraid could allow unauthorized access to the system, potentially leading to data compromise or further system manipulation. Organizations using Unraid should prioritize identifying and securing any exposed instances to mitigate business risk. Understanding the scope of affected systems is the first step in addressing this security concern.

  • Find all Unraid systems.
  • Limit network access to Unraid.
  • Update Unraid and verify.

Frequently asked questions

What is Unraid and what is it used for?

Unraid is an operating system designed for managing network-attached storage (NAS) and running various server applications. It's commonly used in home or small business environments for tasks like file storage, media streaming, and running virtual machines or Docker containers. Its web-based interface simplifies system management.

What kind of weakness is CVE-2020-5849?

CVE-2020-5849 is an authentication bypass vulnerability. This means an attacker can circumvent the normal login process, gaining access to the system without needing valid credentials. This specific weakness is categorized under CWE-697, which relates to incorrect authentication.

How can an attacker exploit CVE-2020-5849?

An attacker can exploit this vulnerability by targeting the authentication mechanism of Unraid. The vulnerability can be triggered remotely and does not require any prior access or special conditions, other than network connectivity to the affected system.

Who should be concerned about CVE-2020-5849?

Anyone running Unraid, especially if it's accessible from the internet, should be concerned. While Unraid is often used internally, misconfigurations or intentional exposure can make it reachable from the outside. This external accessibility, even if not the default, means a wider range of users might be at risk.

What is the first step to address this Unraid vulnerability?

The first practical step for anyone running Unraid is to identify all instances of the software within their environment. This is crucial for understanding the scope of potential risk before implementing any security measures or updates.

References