CVE-2019-25020
📋 TL;DR
This vulnerability allows unauthenticated attackers to retrieve administrative configuration data from Scytl sVote 2.1 systems by sending POST requests to the /sdm-ws-rest/preconfiguration API endpoint. This affects all deployments of sVote 2.1 with the vulnerable API exposed. Attackers can gain sensitive configuration information without any authentication.
💻 Affected Systems
- Scytl sVote
📦 What is this software?
⚠️ Risk & Real-World Impact
Worst Case
Attackers obtain full administrative configuration including secrets, database credentials, and system architecture details, enabling complete system compromise and election manipulation.
Likely Case
Attackers harvest sensitive configuration data that could be used for further attacks, credential theft, or understanding system architecture for targeted exploitation.
If Mitigated
With proper authentication controls, only authorized administrators can access configuration data, preventing information disclosure.
🎯 Exploit Status
Exploitation requires only a simple HTTP POST request to the vulnerable endpoint. No authentication or special tools needed.
🛠️ Fix & Mitigation
✅ Official Fix
Patch Version: Version after 2.1 (check with vendor for specific patched version)
Vendor Advisory: https://www.scytl.com/security-advisory/
Restart Required: Yes
Instructions:
1. Contact Scytl for patched version. 2. Backup current configuration. 3. Apply vendor-provided patch. 4. Restart sVote services. 5. Verify authentication is required for /sdm-ws-rest/preconfiguration endpoint.
🔧 Temporary Workarounds
Implement API Authentication
allAdd authentication requirements to the sdm-ws-rest API endpoints
# Configure web server (Apache/Nginx) to require authentication for /sdm-ws-rest/* paths
# Implement application-level authentication in sVote configuration
Network Access Control
linuxRestrict access to the sdm-ws-rest API endpoint
# Firewall rule to block external access: iptables -A INPUT -p tcp --dport [sVote-port] -s ! [admin-networks] -j DROP
# Web server configuration to restrict /sdm-ws-rest/* to internal IPs
🧯 If You Can't Patch
- Implement strict network segmentation to isolate sVote systems from untrusted networks
- Deploy a web application firewall (WAF) with rules to block unauthenticated requests to /sdm-ws-rest/preconfiguration
🔍 How to Verify
Check if Vulnerable:
Send POST request to https://[sVote-server]/sdm-ws-rest/preconfiguration. If it returns configuration data without authentication, system is vulnerable.Check Version:
Check sVote administration interface or configuration files for version informationVerify Fix Applied:
Attempt same POST request after fix. Should receive authentication error or 403 Forbidden response.📡 Detection & Monitoring
Log Indicators:
- POST requests to /sdm-ws-rest/preconfiguration from unauthorized IPs
- Large configuration data in response logs
- 401/403 errors after implementing fix
Network Indicators:
- Unusual POST requests to API endpoints from external IPs
- Configuration data in HTTP responses
SIEM Query:
source="web_server_logs" AND uri="/sdm-ws-rest/preconfiguration" AND method="POST" AND (response_code=200 OR response_size>1000)