Blog of cyber
In the cybersecurity environment, understanding and managing vulnerabilities are essential for protecting systems, applications, and data. Among the fundamental tools in this fight against cyber threats, the Common Vulnerabilities and Exposures (CVE) system plays a key role.
CVEs are a publicly accessible list that identifies and catalogs known security vulnerabilities in software and hardware. Initiated by the MITRE Corporation in 1999 and supported by the US Department of Homeland Security (DHS), this system standardizes the communication and management of vulnerabilities, facilitating collaboration and improving overall security.
Beyond a simple list, CVEs establish a common language that enables security teams to understand and neutralize potential threats. For example, CVEs such as CVE-2023-45853 and CVE-2016-2183 illustrate critical risks that require rapid and appropriate responses. Each CVE entry includes a unique identifier (CVE ID), a detailed description of the vulnerability, and at least one public reference, ensuring accurate understanding and rapid response to identified threats.
This article takes an in-depth look at CVEs: their definition, importance, assignment process, severity assessment, and recent examples of critical CVEs. We will also discuss how to integrate CVE management into your cybersecurity strategy to significantly strengthen your security posture.
A CVE, or Common Vulnerability and Exposure, is a unique identifier assigned to a specific security vulnerability in software, hardware, or a system. The CVE program aims to establish a common language and centralized database for identifying, defining, and cataloging publicly disclosed security vulnerabilities. This standardization facilitates consistent and efficient communication and research of specific exploits among security professionals, software vendors, and researchers.
Created in 1999 by the MITRE Corporation, a non-profit organization operating federal research and development centers, the CVE program is sponsored by the US Department of Homeland Security (DHS) and the Cybersecurity and Infrastructure Security Agency (CISA).
The MITRE Corporation, known for the MITRE ATT&CK framework, maintains and administers the CVE program. The National Institute of Standards and Technology (NIST) also contributes, notably through the management of the National Vulnerability Database (NVD), which uses CVE identifiers to catalog and provide detailed information on vulnerabilities.
Each CVE identifier follows a specific format, such as CVE-2024-12345, where the year indicates when the vulnerability was discovered or published, and the unique number allows for precise identification. This format facilitates the search, communication, and management of security vulnerabilities.
CVEs are essential because they are a universally recognized standard for identifying and communicating security vulnerabilities. Used by governments, software vendors such as Fortinet with cases such as Fortigate CVE, cybersecurity researchers, and security professionals worldwide, this system promotes effective collaboration and enhanced coordination in vulnerability management.
National vulnerability databases, such as the NIST National Vulnerability Database (NVD) or those maintained by countries such as China and Russia, all rely on CVEs to index their entries, ensuring global consistency in security threat management.
CVEs serve as an essential reference for security vulnerability remediation. Integrated into various security tools such as security information and management systems (SIEM), vulnerability scanners, and patch management solutions, CVEs enable the identification, classification, and prioritization of vulnerabilities.
These tools leverage CVE identifiers to detect, analyze, and remediate vulnerabilities, facilitating a rapid and targeted response to mitigate risk. This integration strengthens organizations' overall security posture by improving vulnerability detection, analysis, and remediation.
The assignment of a CVE follows a rigorous, multi-step process. The process begins with the discovery of a vulnerability by a security researcher or software development team.
The vulnerability is then reported to the CVE assignment team or a relevant CVE Numbering Authority (CNA), triggering the formal vulnerability management process.
The vulnerability is subjected to a thorough analysis to verify that it meets the criteria for inclusion in the CVE list, using a decision tree and a counting process to determine the number of CVE identifiers to be assigned.
A detailed description of the vulnerability, including its type, the vendor involved, and the affected code base, is prepared either by the reporter or using a template provided by the CVE assignment team. Finally, a CVE ID is assigned, allowing the vulnerability to be catalogued and published, thereby facilitating its communication and management by stakeholders.
CVE Numbering Authorities (CNAs) play a central role in CVE assignment. These accredited organizations, such as software companies (Google, Cisco), open-source projects, coordination centers, or bug bounty service providers, are authorized to assign CVE IDs for vulnerabilities affecting products in their area of expertise.
The diversity and specialization of CNAs ensure accurate and expert CVE ID assignment. They are responsible for reserving the necessary CVE IDs and following process guidelines to maintain quality and consistency in CVE assignment.
Ongoing training for NCA staff and the establishment of an NCA hierarchy contribute to the robustness and reliability of the CVE assignment process.
The Common Vulnerability Scoring System (CVSS) is a system used to assess the severity of security vulnerabilities. Each vulnerability is assigned a numerical score ranging from 0 to 10, where 0 indicates no risk and 10 represents maximum severity. CVSS scores are classified into several severity levels: Low (0.1-3.9), Medium (4.0-6.9), High (7.0-8.9) and Critical (9.0-10.0).
The CVSS score is calculated by taking into account various factors such as exploitability, impact on confidentiality, integrity, and availability, thus reflecting the intrinsic characteristics of the vulnerability.
Interpreting CVSS scores is essential for prioritizing and effectively managing vulnerabilities. In addition to the base score, the CVSS system includes the temporal score, which adjusts the score based on evolving factors such as the availability of patches and the maturity of exploits, and the environmental score, which customizes the score to reflect the specific impact on the organizational context. These components enable security teams to obtain a holistic assessment of a vulnerability's severity, facilitating informed decisions for risk prioritization and mitigation.
CVE-2023-44487, known as "Rapid Reset," is a denial-of-service (DoS) vulnerability affecting the HTTP/2 protocol. Exploited between August and October 2023, this vulnerability had a significant impact on global web services, affecting more than 35% of sites using HTTP/2, including major companies such as Google, AWS, and Cloudflare.
It allows an attacker to quickly generate and cancel a large number of streams, overloading server resources and causing a DoS. Recommended mitigations include applying patches for similar CVEs such as CVE-2023-25690 and configuration changes to mitigate the effects of these attacks.
CVE-2021-44228, commonly known as "Log4Shell," is a critical vulnerability in the Log4j logging library, widely used in Java applications. This vulnerability has attracted considerable media attention due to its potentially devastating impact on systems and applications that depend on Log4j.
It allows an attacker to execute arbitrary code remotely, potentially leading to complete control of the affected system. The severity of this vulnerability has prompted many organizations to act quickly to update Log4j and apply the necessary patches.
CVE-2024-23897 is a critical vulnerability affecting Jenkins, a popular DevOps tool. Among recent critical vulnerabilities, it joins others such as CVE-2022-30190 and CVE-2023-46805, which highlight the importance of a proactive strategy to identify and remediate vulnerabilities in sensitive environments.
Jenkins users are strongly encouraged to apply security updates and follow the mitigation recommendations provided by the Jenkins developers to protect against this vulnerability.
To maintain a robust security posture, it is essential to establish regular monitoring of vulnerability disclosures. This involves monitoring security alerts and bulletins issued by organizations such as CERT-FR, the NIST National Vulnerability Database (NVD), and the MITRE Corporation's CVE list. These sources provide up-to-date information on new vulnerabilities, enabling security teams to respond quickly to emerging threats.
The use of vulnerability management tools is essential for effectively integrating CVEs into your cybersecurity strategy. These tools automate vulnerability detection, classify risks, and prioritize patches.
Vulnerability scanners use CVE identifiers to detect known vulnerabilities, while patch management solutions ensure that the appropriate patches are applied.
Integrating CVE research into your application development and deployment pipeline (CI/CD) is also recommended. This allows vulnerabilities to be detected and corrected early in the development process, reducing security risks.
Documenting and prioritizing vulnerabilities are key steps in CVE management. Integrating CVE information into your Information Security Policy (ISP) and patch management processes is essential.
Maintaining a registry of identified vulnerabilities, assigning them a priority level based on their CVSS score, and planning patches accordingly allows you to address the most critical vulnerabilities first, minimizing the risk to your infrastructure.
Board of Cyber assists you in identifying and mapping systems and assets that are potentially exposed to vulnerabilities identified by CVEs. This detailed mapping and in allows you to determine precisely which systems, applications, and infrastructure are affected, facilitating effective risk management.
With a clear view of all exposed assets, you can target your remediation efforts more effectively, reducing security risks.
Board of Cyber offers real-time vulnerability tracking, alerting you as soon as a critical CVE is published. This rapid response capability is essential for staying informed about the latest security threats and taking immediate action to protect your systems. Real-time alerts reduce response time and the risk of vulnerabilities being exploited by attackers.
Board of Cyber provides a cyber dashboard geared toward Chief Information Security Officers (CISOs), facilitating remediation and compliance reporting. This centralized dashboard allows you to track vulnerability status, plan and implement fixes, and generate detailed reports for regulatory compliance and security audits.
This solution simplifies the vulnerability management process and helps maintain a robust security posture that complies with current standards and regulations.
CVEs are an essential tool for effective cybersecurity management, providing a method for identifying, cataloging, and managing security vulnerabilities. By leveraging databases such as mitre cve and using resources such as cve details, you can anticipate threats, prioritize your actions, and strengthen the resilience of your systems. This structured and consistent approach facilitates communication, coordination, and efficiency in risk management, protecting your systems and data from evolving cyber threats. The CVE ecosystem is undergoing significant change, even before the Dodge/Mitre incident. The introduction of CNAs is very recent. And operationally, even if its format is suboptimal, the only "complete" database that can be used directly remains that of NIST if you don't want to have teams dedicated to the semi-automatic aggregation of multiple existing databases, which has become a real business at the expense of overall improvement of the common system. The "Mitre incident" is also prompting Europeans to rethink their own system while remaining "compatible" in order to limit their dependence on the US, further complicating the problem, for better or for worse: only time will tell.
Don't let security vulnerabilities compromise your security. Anticipate threats, prioritize your actions, and strengthen your resilience with the right tools and expertise. Contact our team to find out how our vulnerability management tool can help you improve your security posture and maintain a secure digital environment.
