Horizon Alert
Summary of the vulnerability and why it matters
A vulnerability has been identified in Ansible Automation Platform that could allow unauthorized access to sensitive environments. This flaw arises when copying workflow templates, where certain security checks are bypassed, potentially enabling users to execute automation in contexts they shouldn't access. This could lead to unintended or malicious operations within critical infrastructure.
- Flaw allows unauthorized automation execution.
- Matters for controlling sensitive environments.
- Confirm relevance and assess exposure.
Attack Path
How an attacker could exploit the issue
An attacker with specific administrative permissions within the Ansible Automation Platform can exploit a flaw during the copying of workflow job templates. By copying a template, the attacker can gain administrative control over the copied workflow and then intentionally pin its jobs to instance groups they would normally be restricted from accessing, including the control-plane. This allows them to execute automation with elevated privileges in the control-plane's execution context.
- Entry condition: Organization workflow-admin permission.
- Trigger point: Copying a workflow job template.
- Resulting risk: Control-plane execution context bypass.
Live Threat
Current exploitation, exposure, and threat context
A flaw in Ansible Automation Platform's workflow copying mechanism could allow a user with workflow administrative privileges to gain unauthorized control over jobs. When a workflow is copied, certain configurations like instance groups and execution environments are preserved, but the associated permissions are not properly re-validated. This could enable an attacker to designate specific, restricted instance groups for job execution, potentially including the control-plane, leading to unintended or malicious automation actions within that context.
- Unsanctioned job execution on sensitive instance groups.
- Workflow copy bypasses instance group permission checks.
- Attacker-influenced automation runs in restricted contexts.
Operational Fix
Recommended remediation, mitigation, and detection steps
This critical vulnerability in Ansible Automation Platform's automation-controller impacts organizations utilizing workflow job templates. The flaw allows users with specific administrative roles to bypass instance group permissions, potentially leading to unauthorized automation execution within sensitive environments, including the control plane. Platform or infrastructure teams are likely responsible for managing Ansible, with security teams needing to assess exposure. The initial step should involve identifying all instances of the affected platform, confirming their network reachability and business criticality, and then identifying the specific accountable owners before planning remediation.
- Platform/Infrastructure teams should own the issue.
- Verify instance group access controls.
- Plan remediation based on risk exposure.
