ICS Advisory

Advantech EKI-1200 Buffer Overflow

Last Revised
Alert Code
ICSA-15-041-01

OVERVIEW

Enrique Nissim and Pablo Lorenzzato from Core Security Engineering Team have identified a buffer overflow vulnerability in Advantech EKI-1200 product line. Advantech has produced a patch that mitigates this vulnerability. CORE Security has tested the patch to validate that it resolves the vulnerability.

This vulnerability could be exploited remotely.

AFFECTED PRODUCTS

Advantech reports that the vulnerability affects the following products:

  • EKI-1200 product line.

IMPACT

An exploit of this vulnerability could allow an attacker to execute arbitrary code.

Impact to individual organizations depends on many factors that are unique to each organization. NCCIC/ICS-CERT recommends that organizations evaluate the impact of this vulnerability based on their operational environment, architecture, and product implementation.

BACKGROUND

Advantech is based in Taiwan and has distribution offices in 21 countries worldwide.

The EKI-1200 series Modbus gateways are bi-directional gateways for integrating Modbus/RTU and Modbus/ASCII serial devices to TCP/IP networked-based devices. These products are deployed in industrial automation globally.

VULNERABILITY CHARACTERIZATION

VULNERABILITY OVERVIEW

BUFFER OVERFLOWCWE-122: Heap-based Buffer Overflow, http://cwe.mitre.org/data/definitions/122.html, web site last accessed February 10, 2015.

Advantech EKI-1200 products are vulnerable to a buffer overflow, which can be exploited by remote attackers to execute arbitrary code.

CVE-2014-8385NVD, http://web.nvd.nist.gov/view/vuln/detail?vulnId=CVE-2014-8385, NIST uses this advisory to create the CVE web site report. This web site will be active sometime after publication of this advisory. has been assigned to this vulnerability. A CVSS v2 base score of 10.0 has been assigned; the CVSS vector string is (AV:N/AC:L/Au:N/C:C/I:C/A:C).CVSS Calculator, http://nvd.nist.gov/cvss.cfm?version=2&vector=AV:N/AC:L/Au:N/C:C/I:C/A:C, web site last accessed February 10, 2015.

VULNERABILITY DETAILS

EXPLOITABILITY

This vulnerability could be exploited remotely.

EXISTENCE OF EXPLOIT

No known public exploits specifically target this vulnerability.

DIFFICULTY

An attacker with a low skill would be able to exploit this vulnerability.

MITIGATION

Advantech has created new firmware Version 1.63 to mitigate this vulnerability. Users may download the patch from the following location at Advantech’s web site:

http://support.advantech.com.tw/Support/DownloadSRDetail_New.aspx?SR_ID=1-V6XOHK&Doc_Source=Download

For additional information about the EKI 1221, please visit the following Advantech web site:

http://www.advantech.com/products/INDUSTRIAL_COMMUNICATION/EKI-1221/mod_A4DB49EB-38F0-4745-A83C-B0EAC73AC0B3.aspx

ICS-CERT encourages asset owners to take additional defensive measures to protect against this and other cybersecurity risks.

  • Minimize network exposure for all control system devices and/or systems, and ensure that they are not accessible from the Internet.
  • Locate control system networks and remote devices behind firewalls, and isolate them from the business network.
  • When remote access is required, use secure methods, such as Virtual Private Networks (VPNs), recognizing that VPNs may have vulnerabilities and should be updated to the most current version available. Also recognize that VPN is only as secure as the connected devices.

ICS-CERT also provides a section for control systems security recommended practices on the ICS-CERT web page at: http://ics-cert.us-cert.gov/content/recommended-practices. Several recommended practices are available for reading and download, including Improving Industrial Control Systems Cybersecurity with Defense-in-Depth Strategies. ICS-CERT reminds organizations to perform proper impact analysis and risk assessment prior to deploying defensive measures.

Additional mitigation guidance and recommended practices are publicly available in the ICS‑CERT Technical Information Paper, ICS-TIP-12-146-01B--Targeted Cyber Intrusion Detection and Mitigation Strategies, that is available for download from the ICS-CERT web site (http://ics-cert.us-cert.gov/).

Organizations observing any suspected malicious activity should follow their established internal procedures and report their findings to ICS-CERT for tracking and correlation against other incidents.

This product is provided subject to this Notification and this Privacy & Use policy.

Vendor

Advantech