CVE-2024-11497 Overview
CVE-2024-11497 is an authenticated privilege escalation vulnerability that allows an attacker with valid credentials to gain root access on affected systems. The flaw is categorized under [CWE-732] (Incorrect Permission Assignment for Critical Resource) and was disclosed through VDE CERT advisory VDE-2024-070.
An attacker who already holds low-privileged authenticated access can leverage improper permission assignments to escalate to root. Root access grants full control over the affected device, including configuration changes, credential theft, and persistent implant deployment.
Critical Impact
An authenticated low-privileged user can escalate to root, resulting in full compromise of confidentiality, integrity, and availability on the affected device.
Affected Products
Affected product details are published in the VDE Security Advisory VDE-2024-070. Consult the advisory for the authoritative list of impacted products and firmware versions.
Discovery Timeline
- 2025-01-14 - CVE-2024-11497 published to NVD
- 2026-06-17 - Last updated in NVD database
Technical Details for CVE-2024-11497
Vulnerability Analysis
The vulnerability stems from incorrect permission assignment on a critical resource, classified as [CWE-732]. An authenticated attacker with network access and low privileges can exploit the weakness without user interaction. Successful exploitation yields root-level control of the affected system.
Because the attack vector is network-based and requires only low privileges, any account that can authenticate to the exposed service becomes a viable staging point. This includes accounts intended for read-only or operator-level access.
Root Cause
The root cause is an improper permissions configuration on a resource that should be restricted to privileged users. When a critical file, socket, executable, or configuration entry is writable or executable by a lower-privileged account, the attacker can manipulate it to run code in the context of root.
The VDE advisory documents the specific component affected and the corrective permission model. Refer to VDE-2024-070 for the vendor's technical description.
Attack Vector
An attacker first authenticates to the affected device over the network using any valid low-privileged credential. They then interact with the mispermissioned resource to inject commands, modify configuration, or replace an executable invoked by a privileged process. The privileged process consumes the attacker-controlled input and executes it as root.
No exploit code is publicly available at this time, and the vulnerability is not listed on the CISA Known Exploited Vulnerabilities catalog.
Detection Methods for CVE-2024-11497
Indicators of Compromise
- Unexpected changes to file ownership, mode bits, or ACLs on system binaries and configuration files.
- Root-owned processes spawned from executables located in user-writable directories.
- Authentication events from low-privileged accounts followed by privilege transitions to uid=0.
- New cron entries, systemd units, or startup scripts created shortly after low-privileged logins.
Detection Strategies
- Baseline file permissions on critical resources and alert on drift, especially world-writable or group-writable states on root-owned files.
- Correlate authentication logs with subsequent privileged command execution to identify escalation chains.
- Monitor process lineage for cases where a low-privileged parent spawns a root-privileged child outside sanctioned sudo or setuid flows.
Monitoring Recommendations
- Enable verbose audit logging (auditd or equivalent) for chmod, chown, setuid, and configuration file writes.
- Ship authentication and privilege-change events to a centralized SIEM for correlation across devices.
- Review shell history and command execution telemetry on affected devices for suspicious commands issued by non-administrative accounts.
How to Mitigate CVE-2024-11497
Immediate Actions Required
- Apply the vendor-provided firmware update referenced in VDE-2024-070 as soon as it is available in your environment.
- Restrict network access to the affected management interface to trusted administrative networks only.
- Rotate all credentials on affected devices, particularly low-privileged operator accounts.
- Audit account inventories and remove unused or default accounts that could serve as an authentication foothold.
Patch Information
Consult the VDE Security Advisory VDE-2024-070 for the vendor's official patch guidance, including fixed versions and upgrade procedures. No alternative vendor advisory URLs are currently published in the NVD record.
Workarounds
- Place affected devices behind a firewall or VLAN that only permits access from authorized administrator workstations.
- Enforce strong, unique passwords and multi-factor authentication where the platform supports it to reduce the probability of authenticated access by an attacker.
- Disable or remove unnecessary low-privileged accounts to shrink the attack surface for authenticated exploitation.
- Monitor affected assets closely until the vendor patch is deployed.
Disclaimer: This content was generated using AI. While we strive for accuracy, please verify critical information with official sources.
