CWE-671: Lack of Administrator Control over Security
Learn about CWE-671 (Lack of Administrator Control over Security), its security impact, exploitation methods, and prevention guidelines.
What is Lack of Administrator Control over Security?
• Overview: Lack of Administrator Control over Security (CWE-671) occurs when a software product is designed in a way that prevents administrators from customizing security settings to suit their specific environment, potentially leading to security weaknesses.
• Exploitation Methods:
- Attackers can exploit this vulnerability by taking advantage of fixed security settings, such as hard-coded credentials, which cannot be modified or strengthened by the administrator.
- Common attack patterns include brute force attacks on known usernames and passwords, or exploiting default configurations that cannot be changed.
• Security Impact:
- Direct consequences include unauthorized access to the system, data breaches, and inability to enforce strong security policies.
- Potential cascading effects involve compromised system integrity, loss of sensitive data, and increased vulnerability to further attacks.
- Business impact can be severe, including financial loss, damage to reputation, and compliance issues due to lack of security control.
• Prevention Guidelines:
- Specific code-level fixes include allowing customization of all security-related settings, such as user accounts and authentication methods.
- Security best practices involve designing software with flexible security controls that can be adjusted to meet the administrator's security requirements.
- Recommended tools and frameworks include those that support dynamic security configurations and provide comprehensive access control management.
Technical Details
Likelihood of Exploit: Not specified
Affected Languages: Not specified
Affected Technologies: Not specified