CVE-2022-4987

Executive Summary

CVE-2022-4987 is a high-severity vulnerability in Hirschmann Industrial HiVision, a network management and visualization tool used in industrial environments. The flaw resides in the execution of user-configured external applications. Due to insufficient path sanitization, a local attacker can place a malicious binary in the execution path of a configured external application, causing it to be executed instead of the intended application. This can result in execution with elevated privileges depending on the context of the external application. The vulnerability has a CVSS score of 7.3 and is classified as CWE-426 (Untrusted Search Path). No public proof-of-concept or exploit code is currently available, and the EPSS score is 0.0%, indicating a low probability of exploitation in the wild. The vendor has released patches in versions 08.1.04 and 08.2.00.

CVSS Breakdown & Threat Level

• CVSS Score: 7.3 (High)
• Attack Vector: Local (AV:L)
• Attack Complexity: Low (AC:L)
• Privileges Required: Low (PR:L)
• User Interaction: None (UI:N)
• Scope: Unchanged (S:U)
• Confidentiality Impact: High (C:H)
• Integrity Impact: High (I:H)
• Availability Impact: High (A:H)

Threat Level: High. The vulnerability allows a local attacker to execute arbitrary binaries with elevated privileges, potentially leading to full system compromise. The attack complexity is low, and no user interaction is required.

Deep Dive & Mechanics

The vulnerability exists in the mechanism by which Hirschmann Industrial HiVision executes user-configured external applications. The application does not properly sanitize the path used to locate and execute these external binaries. An attacker with local access can exploit this by placing a malicious binary in a directory that appears earlier in the system's PATH environment variable than the intended application's directory. When HiVision attempts to execute the configured external application, the operating system's search order will find the malicious binary first, leading to its execution instead of the legitimate one.

This is a classic untrusted search path vulnerability (CWE-426). The impact is amplified because the external application may be executed with elevated privileges, depending on how HiVision is configured or the context in which it runs. For example, if HiVision is running as a service with SYSTEM privileges, the malicious binary would also execute with those privileges.

Vulnerable vs. Patched Code

Vulnerable Code (Conceptual): The vulnerable code likely uses a function like CreateProcess or execvp with a relative path or a path that is not fully qualified, relying on the system's PATH environment variable.

// Vulnerable: Uses relative path or relies on PATH
CreateProcess("external_tool.exe", ...);

Patched Code (Conceptual): The patched code should use a fully qualified path to the intended binary, or explicitly set the PATH to a safe value before execution.

// Patched: Uses absolute path
CreateProcess("C:\\Program Files\\HiVision\\bin\\external_tool.exe", ...);

Exploitation & Lab Setup

Red Team

Prerequisites:

• Local access to a system running Hirschmann Industrial HiVision version 08.1.03 or 08.2.00.
• Knowledge of which external application is configured in HiVision.
• Ability to write files to a directory that appears earlier in the PATH than the intended application's directory.

Exploitation Steps:

1. Identify the external application configured in HiVision (e.g., ping.exe).
2. Determine a directory that is earlier in the PATH (e.g., C:\Users\<username>\AppData\Local\Microsoft\WindowsApps).
3. Create a malicious binary named ping.exe that performs a privileged action (e.g., adds a user to the Administrators group).
4. Place the malicious binary in the identified directory.
5. Trigger the execution of the external application from HiVision (e.g., by performing a network scan that uses ping).
6. The malicious binary executes with the privileges of the HiVision process.

Example Malicious Binary (PowerShell):

# malicious_ping.ps1
# This script would be compiled into an executable named ping.exe
Add-LocalGroupMember -Group "Administrators" -Member "attacker"

Blue Team

Detection:

• Monitor for unexpected file creations in directories that are part of the system PATH.
• Monitor for process creation events where the parent process is HiVision and the child process is an unexpected binary.
• Use Sysmon to log process creation and file creation events.

Hunting:

• Search for instances where HiVision (e.g., HiVision.exe) spawns a child process that is not the expected external application.
• Look for discrepancies between the intended external application path and the actual executed path.

Lab Setup:

• Install Hirschmann Industrial HiVision version 08.1.03 on a Windows VM.
• Configure an external application (e.g., ping.exe).
• Create a test user with local access.
• Attempt to exploit the vulnerability as described in the Red Team section.

Indicators of Compromise (IOCs)

• File Indicators:

  • Unexpected executables named after common system tools (e.g., ping.exe, tracert.exe, nslookup.exe) in user-writable directories.
  • Files with suspicious content in directories listed in the PATH environment variable.

• Process Indicators:

  • Parent process: HiVision.exe
  • Child process: An unexpected binary (e.g., malicious.exe or a legitimate tool from a non-standard path).

• Network Indicators:

  • Outbound connections from the malicious binary to attacker-controlled infrastructure.

• Registry Indicators:

  • Modifications to the PATH environment variable to include attacker-controlled directories.

Detection Engineering

YARA Rule

rule CVE_2022_4987_Hirschmann_HiVision_Path_Traversal {
    meta:
        description = "Detects potential exploitation of CVE-2022-4987 via malicious binaries in PATH"
        author = "Valters IT"
        date = "2025-04-10"
        reference = "CVE-2022-4987"
    strings:
        $s1 = "HiVision.exe" nocase
        $s2 = "CreateProcess" nocase
        $s3 = "execvp" nocase
    condition:
        $s1 and ($s2 or $s3)
}

Sigma Rule

title: CVE-2022-4987 Hirschmann HiVision Untrusted Search Path
id: 12345678-1234-1234-1234-123456789012
status: experimental
description: Detects process creation events where HiVision spawns an unexpected child process
author: Valters IT
date: 2025-04-10
references:
    - https://nvd.nist.gov/vuln/detail/CVE-2022-4987
logsource:
    category: process_creation
    product: windows
detection:
    selection:
        ParentImage|endswith: '\HiVision.exe'
    filter:
        Image|endswith:
            - '\ping.exe'
            - '\tracert.exe'
            - '\nslookup.exe'
    condition: selection and not filter
falsepositives:
    - Legitimate use of external applications from standard paths
level: high

Suricata Rule

alert tcp $HOME_NET any -> $EXTERNAL_NET any (msg:"CVE-2022-4987 Hirschmann HiVision Potential Exploitation"; flow:to_server,established; content:"HiVision"; nocase; content:"CreateProcess"; nocase; distance:0; within:100; classtype:attempted-admin; sid:1000001; rev:1;)

Remediation & Mitigation

Immediate Actions:

1. Upgrade HiVision: Update to version 08.1.04 or 08.2.00, which contain the fix for this vulnerability.
2. Restrict Local Access: Limit local user access to systems running HiVision to only trusted personnel.
3. Audit PATH Environment: Review and harden the system PATH environment variable to remove user-writable directories.

Long-Term Mitigations:

1. Application Whitelisting: Use AppLocker or similar tools to restrict which executables can be launched by HiVision.
2. Principle of Least Privilege: Run HiVision with the minimum necessary privileges.
3. Regular Vulnerability Scanning: Implement regular scans to identify and patch vulnerable software.
4. Monitor for Exploitation: Deploy the provided YARA, Sigma, and Suricata rules to detect potential exploitation attempts.

Valters IT Signature: This report was generated by Valters IT, an elite DevSecOps and Cyber Threat Intelligence team. For further assistance, contact us at valters@example.com.

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